CALEDONIA — It wasn’t a district match. It didn’t count in the standings or for postseason seedings. And it was part of an annual fundraiser for breast cancer research.
But the volleyball was no afterthought Tuesday night for New Hope and Caledonia, which put on an impressive show featuring four tight sets, plenty of remarkable defense and a fair share of drama before the Trojans completed a 25-23, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23 victory in the fifth annual Dig Pink match to benefit the Side-Out Foundation..
“This is what’s fun,” Cavaliers coach Samantha Brooks said. “This is volleyball that’s fun. They’re a rival, and it’s really great practice for us going into the playoffs.”
Trojans coach Allison Woolbright fully agreed.
“Of course, it’s a big rivalry,” she said. “It’s not a district game, but it’s two county schools. A lot of our kids are friends with their kids and play travel ball in all sports together.
“But at the end of the way, we still like to win.”
And win they did, improving to 12-9. The Trojans will face Tupelo on Thursday to close the regular season, then host Canton at 6 p.m. Tuesday to open the Class 5A Tournament.
Meanwhile, Caledonia (12-11-2), which placed second in its district, will travel to Kosciusko at 6 p.m. Tuesday for its Class 4A postseason opener.
The four-set varsity match capped a long day of volleyball, as middle school, ninth grade and junior varsity teams played earlier. But the long day for everyone, including the two officials who worked all four matches, did not dampen the enthusiasm for the cause.
“This is our fifth annual Dig Pink,” Brooks said. “It started with one of our players who had seen something online, and I had seen some emails as well. We researched some ideas and everybody put some ideas out there, and this is what we came up with.
“It’s a community builder. A lot of our girls know each other, hang out, play club volleyball and other sports together. It’s just a neat community thing to do and a way for the girls to give back.”
“(Samantha) contacted me and said, hey, would you be interested in making our game an annual Dig Pink for breast cancer? And of course I said yes,” Woolbright said. “It’s a cause that has affected so many people in my own family, co-workers and friends. It was really easy for the girls to get behind it, and our parents are just awesome because they get these items donated.”
The Side-Out Foundation was created in 2004 by Rick Dunetz, a high school volleyball coach in Virginia whose mother was battling cancer. The organization is focused on raising money for the research and treatment of Stage 4 breast cancer, on the theory that “if we could extend the lives of those living with the most advanced state of breast cancer, we could really make a difference for anyone living with breast cancer,” Dunetz says on the organization’s website.
“At some point, everybody is going to be affected by it,” Brooks said of the disease.
As for the match, the Trojans were the better team down the stretch in the opening two sets, taking a 24-20 lead and holding off the Cavaliers in the opener and scoring the last five points of the second.
“A lot of it has to do with chemistry of the players on the court and how they connect with each other,” Woolbright said of her team’s ability to close well.
The Cavaliers took a 20-13 lead in the third before the Trojans battled back, pulling within 24-22 on a nice tap by Annie Woolbright. But a service error.— New Hope’s only one of the set — gave Caledonia the win.
With the fourth set beginning near 9 p.m., the crowd thinned out a bit, and both teams looked tired at times down the stretch, including a sequence in which three serves out of five missed the mark, a couple of obvious signs of miscommunication and two occasions on which New Hope players collided. But the play was largely even, with the teams tying at 7-7, 14-14, 18-18, 19-19, 20-20, 21-21 and 22-22 before the Trojans finally took a 2-point edge when a shot by Lexi McBrayer barely eluded a diving Tykeasia Turner to bring up match point.
Caledonia dodged the first one on an attack error, but the Cavs were called for four hits on the second one, and the Trojans went home winners.
But the real winner was the Side-Out Foundation, which, if past years are any indication, will receive between $2,000 and $3,000 from the event.
“In the past five years, it’s well over $10,000,” Brooks said.
Added Woolbright: “It keeps growing and getting better and better every year.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 33 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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Related Photos
Four of the many signs on the walls of the Caledonia High School gym that expressed support for Dig Pink, an annual breast cancer fundraiser supporting the Side-Out Foundation. Tom Rysinski/Dispatch Staff
Pink-clad New Hope High School volleyball coach Allison Woolbright runs warm-ups before the annual Dig Pink match against Caledonia on Tuesday night. The Trojans won in four sets. Tom Rysinski/Dispatch Staff
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