The Shepherd Lady Pirates may have walked away from the Sept. 15 match without a win, but they left the court with something every young volleyball team needs — confidence.
Facing one of the toughest teams on their schedule, the Hampshire-Fannett Lady Horns, Shepherd put together its strongest showing of the season before Hampshire-Fannett closed out the match in three sets. The Lady Horns entered the contest with an impressive 23-7 record, compared with Shepherd's 7-16 mark. On paper, the matchup looked like it could be a long night for the Lady Pirates. Instead, Shepherd came out ready to compete.
The best-of-five match started with Hampshire-Fannett jumping out to an early advantage. The Lady Horns appeared ready to take control, but Shepherd quickly answered. The Lady Pirates settled in, fought their way back and turned the opening set into a back-and-forth battle. The lead changed hands several times as Shepherd refused to let the much more experienced Lady Horns pull away. Hampshire-Fannett eventually secured the first set 25-20, but the score told only part of the story.
During the break between sets, Head Coach Ashley Brockner gathered her team and reminded the Lady Pirates that they were playing good volleyball and had every reason to keep their heads up. That message carried straight into the second set.
Next, the Lady Pirates battled Hampshire-Fannett point for point, repeatedly answering Hampshire-Fannett's scoring runs and kept the set within reach all the way to the finish. With the match hanging in the balance, Shepherd came within two points of taking the set. The Lady Horns finally closed it out 25-23, but for the Lady Pirates, being one point away from taking a set from a 23-7 team was a victory of its own in terms of the progress being made.
Unfortunately, the third set proved to be a different story. Hampshire-Fannett regained control and finished the match with a 25-6 victory. But that final set should not overshadow what happened during the first two. For much of the evening, Shepherd looked like a team that has grown considerably since the beginning of the season.
The improvement isn't just visible on the court, it's showing up in the statistics as well. Brooklyn White continues to lead the Lady Pirates' attack with 133 kills and has been a force at the service line with 30 aces. At the net, middle blocker Whitney Millage has recorded 23 blocks. Junior libero Swayzie Nelson has accumulated 197 digs, helping keep rallies alive. Senior Rylei Brewer has been directing the offense with 298 assists, helping Shepherd continue to develop its attack.
On Friday, the Lady Pirates dropped 3 games to Hargrave, with scores of 15-25, 19-25 and 21-25.
Brooklyn White led the charge with 11 kills and 15 digs. Rylei Brewer posted 18 assists, and both Abbey Anderson and Swayzie Nelson posted 11 digs apiece.
Last week the Lady Trojans played North Zulch and Alpha Omega in a tri-match on Sept. 15.
Head Coach Krista Jones said they lost both games in 2 sets (best 2 out of 3), and that the games were rough for Coldspring.
Stats were not immediately available.
