Heritage Christian Academy moved to 2-0 in 8th District play Tuesday night with a straight-set win over Hopkinsville before a raucous crowd at Warrior Gym.
HCA rolled to a 25-5 win in the opening set and claimed 25-11 and 25-13 wins in the final two sets.
Despite playing without two starters, HCA looked strong early using a 6-0 run to build an 11-3 lead in the opening set and closed with an 8-0 run. Mya Goodwin had four aces, and Katie Cansler added four kills for HCA in the first set.
Hoptown scored the opening point of the second set on an ace by Alayna King. HCA rallied to take a 9-4 lead, but Hoptown hung close and trailed 13-8. After each team traded three points, the Lady Warriors closed the set with nine straight points highlighted by three aces by Makenzie McCarty and strong play at the net by Bralee Fowler with a pair of blocks.
Hopkinsville grabbed a 5-3 lead in the third set behind a pair of kills by Madysen Taggart.
HCA responded with a 10-1 run and closed the match with a 7-2 run behind three aces from Goodwin and a pair by 23.
Goodwin ended the match with nine kills, 10 assists, and seven aces.
Cansler added seven kills, and McCarty had 11 assists and four aces for the Lady Warriors who improved to 4-0 all-time against Hopkinsville.
HCA went 2-2 over the weekend at the Kentucky Christian Athletic Conference and lost a pair of starters to injury. However, coach Grace Stewart likes where her team is after the first week.
“I think they’re doing a great job of putting things together. Tonight we had two girls out so we had to run a little bit of a different rotation and they didn’t miss a beat with it so I’m proud of how they’re stepping in and owning up to their roles right now,” she said. “I have more of a varsity roster than I ever have and a lot of girls that are confident which is what you want.”
Taggart led Hopkinsville with six kills and two digs. Saralynn Major had three assists and King had a pair of aces.
Hopkinsville picked up its first win of the season on Monday against Trigg County before Tuesday’s district loss.
“We’re not where we want to be obviously. We’re working through a lot of transitions and changes. A lot of people playing the wrong positions, a lot of people playing the right positions, but we’ve got to switch them to a different position. And then, our attendance at games and practices is a struggle right now,” Hopkinsville coach Laykin Peek said.
“I’m liking our aggressiveness on the front row as much as we can get, considering we’re down a lot of hitters. And then, obviously, we aren’t giving up completely. We are still trying to play the game.”
Hopkinsville (1-3, 0-1) will host Fort Campbell on Thursday in the second of three straight district matches. The Lady Tigers will play Christian County on Sept. 5.
Heritage Christian Academy (5-3, 2-0) will play at Christian County on Thursday and Stewart is hoping for a complete match from her squad.
“We’re still working on letting down a little bit, making sure we stay focused for all 25 points in all three or five sets. That’s what we’re trying to work on right now.”
