The Christian County Lady Colonels grabbed the momentum midway through its match with Crittenden County Tuesday and never relinquished it, snaring the four-set win at Lyle Dunbar Gymnasium.
The first two sets were decided by 25-21 scores – Christian County winning the first set and Crittenden County taking the second.
The Lady Colonels trailed 17-13 in the third set before using a 6-0 run to grab a 19-17 lead. The set was tied at 19 and 24 with an Anaysia Bagwell kill and Crittenden net violation closing out the set win for Christian County.
“We had a little bit of time in that second set, especially where we started to drop down and get a little down on ourselves. And I was really, really proud of the way that we were able to pull back together as a team,” said first-year coach Samantha Self.
Christian County never trailed in the fourth set and coasted to the 25-10 win.
The Colonels were big at the net as Cam Armstrong, Kaidence Atwell, and Skylar Kirby combined for 26 kills. Rylee Owens added 22 assists, and Bagwell had six kills.
Self said the momentum boost from the third set win proved key.
“There’s a lot of nerves, there’s a lot of tension, and it feels really good to pull that out because that’s a big momentum shift for sure.”
Crittenden County (1-1) was bothered by 10 service errors and 15 attack errors. Carly Porter had nine kills, and Jaylee Champion served up five aces.
With a veteran team in tow, Self likes the progress the Lady Colonels have made since the summer.
“We’re so much more playing as a team. They’re covering each other so much better. They’re picking each other up between points and everything else. They’re playing as a team and trying to find that cohesiveness,” she said.
Christian County will open district play Thursday at Heritage Christian Academy.
