The volleyball had barely grazed the floor before a voice rang out from the Heritage Academy bench.
“That’s what I’m talking about!”
Patriots coach Emily Mohlenbrok certainly had every right to be fired up after the play she’d just witnessed. Just a minute ago, during the break after the third set of Tuesday’s match, she’d told the Pats they weren’t unleashing their full potential on opposing Winston Academy despite holding a 2-1 lead.
“They were going easy on them, and I was like, ‘Y’all just need to step up and be more aggressive,'” Mohlenbrok said.
So when junior middle blocker Elizabeth Nichols opened the fourth set by scalding a shot off a Winston player and down to the court, Nichols and her teammates cheered loudly in the center of the court as Mohlenbrok shouted her approval from the sideline.
Heritage Academy had finally flexed its might.
The Patriots were at their best in that fourth set, completing a rapid comeback after dropping a tightly contested first set by winning the following three. Set scores were 23-25, 25-22, 25-20 and 25-16 as Heritage Academy (1-2) picked up its first win this season.
“It felt really great,” Nichols said. “My teammates and I, we all worked really hard for this. We went to practice every single day; we brought our best attitudes. I think that’s what really helped us.”
Nichols said morale flagged during a five-set loss against Lamar School in the Patriots’ season opener Aug. 20. Heritage Academy came back from a 2-0 deficit by winning two straight sets before dropping the deciding fifth set 15-12 and losing the match.
“We dropped our attitudes and the environment was really toxic in our first game toward the ending,” Nichols said.
A straight-set loss to Grace Christian on Aug. 27 followed, but the Pats told themselves they’d pick things up by their home match against Winston. That, Mohlenbrok said, they did.
“I feel like the girls really knew what needed to be adjusted and what needed to be fixed, and they came back and just were a lot more aggressive, a lot smarter with where they were putting the ball, and it worked out,” Mohlenbrok said.
She and Nichols both said sophomore setter Lucy Sharp was integral to the Patriots’ win Tuesday.
Before that same hard shot early in the fourth set, Nichols told Sharp, “Hey, if you set it a little bit closer to the net, I can hit it.” Sharp did so, and the rest was history.
“I couldn’t hit anything if it weren’t for Lucy,” Nichols said.
Nichols said playing good volleyball requires one “fluid motion” from the back row to the setter to the hitters in the front row, but her coach singled out Sharp’s play in particular.
“Lucy’s a great setter, so we’re really thankful to have her,” Mohlenbrok said.
Mohlenbrok said she hopes for redemption against Grace Christian when the Patriots host the Eagles on Thursday.
Nichols, too, hopes the Patriots can build on what she agreed was their most complete match of the season Tuesday.
“It was so much fun,” she said.
Other scores
Starkville 3, Caledonia 1
CALEDONIA — Starkville High School beat Caledonia for the second time this season, winning close first and fourth sets to secure a 3-1 victory.
Set scores were 26-24, 19-25, 25-18 and 26-24.
Emily Clark, Zoe Hansen, Libby McMurphey, Kordelia Bergstrom and Megan Chandler all had four kills for Caledonia,
Emma McKee led with 18 digs, and Hansen had 16.
Clark led with 15 assists and also had four aces. Bergstrom had two blocks.
Starkville will host South Panola on Thursday, while Caledonia will travel to play Pontotoc.
New Hope 3, Grenada 0
GRENADA — New Hope swept Grenada in Tuesday’s road match.
Set scores were 25-12, 25-12 and 25-10.
Daylyn Nettles had a block and a team-high 13 kills for the Trojans (7-0), while Micaela Hudgins and Madyson McBrayer each had eight kills.
Annie Woolbright led New Hope with 16 assists and five digs.
Hudgins and Kensley Woolbright tied for the team lead with seven aces apiece.
The Trojans will play at Choctaw County on Thursday.
Aberdeen 3, West Lowndes 0
Prep Girls Soccer
Starkville Academy 5, Magnolia Heights 0
Lauren Bock had a hat trick as Starkville Academy girls soccer continued its winning ways with a 5-0 victory over Magnolia Heights on Tuesday in Starkville.
Kaitlyn Bock and Mia Kate Cade also added goals for the Volunteers (10-3-1).
Goalkeeper Chandler Nettles recorded her sixth clean sheet of the season, tying Meri Laci Archer’s record from last year’s team.
The Vols host Heritage Academy at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
Prep Softball
Oak Hill Academy 17, Hebron Christian 10
PHEBA — Oak Hill Academy beat Clay County rival Hebron Christian 17-10 on Tuesday in Pheba.
Six runs in the sixth inning and five more in the seventh led the Raiders to victory. The Eagles put up four in the bottom of the seventh to close the gap a bit.
Kara Reed went 3 for 5 for Oak Hill and drove in three runs, while Carley Wooten and Raylee Craven both went 2 for 5 with three RBIs each.
Dovie Suggs and Morgan Dabbs each drove in two for Oak Hill.
Paityn Fulgham was 3 for 3 with two RBIs for Hebron.
The Eagles will play at the Calhoun Academy Tournament on Saturday in Calhoun City.
The Raiders will play at Carroll Academy on Monday.
Winston Academy 14, Starkville Academy 4
LOUISVILLE — Starkville Academy softball lost Tuesday’s road game at Winston Academy, 14-4.
The Volunteers scored all four runs in the fourth inning, while the Patriots scored in five of the six innings in which they came to the plate.
Arlee Oswalt pitched 4.1 innings for Starkville Academy, and Calliope Koiva struck out two in one inning of work.
Starkville Academy will play at Kemper Academy on Thursday in De Kalb.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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