Henderson County and Christian County played a pair of matches during the season that went four sets and five sets, setting the stage for another epic clash in Wednesday’s Second Region semifinal.
Trailing two sets to one, Henderson County used its strong net play to rally for the five-set win (24-26, 25-18, 19-25, 25-13, 15-12) and advanced to its first region championship in three years.
Henderson led wire to wire in the fourth set, setting up Kylee Lyons for five of her 18 kills. Kelli Harris, who was named the region coach of the year on Monday, told her team down 2-1 to just get back to the basics.
“Go out and control the things that we can control. Start making smart shots and keep our serves and then keep our passing game going,” she said.
Addy Kirtley (21 assists) and Kamryn Raley (25 assists) kept finding Lyons, Emmy Sword (8 kills), and Sarah Loffland (15 kills) when the match was on the line.
The fifth set featured five ties before Henderson County moved ahead 8-5 on consecutive points by Sword and a Christian County attack error.
Katie Cansler had a pair of kills, and a Taylor Cantrell block tied the set at 12. Loffland got a kill, Christian County followed with a set error, and Sword ended the match with the clinching point.
Henderson County improved to 3-0 in five-set matches this season, with one of those coming on Sept. 30.
“I think we were mentally ready, and I’m extremely proud of our fight. We’re rebuilding this program, and it’s on the backs of these girls,” Harris said.
Christian County continually battled from behind and trailed Henderson 18-11 in the first set. With Cansler on the serve, Christian County rallied to get to within two points on four occasions. Down 24-22, Cantrell got Christian County to within a point, and Henderson County ended the set with three straight attack errors.
The second set was tied at 14 before Henderson closed with an 11-4 run, sparked by the strong play at the net by Loffland, who had five kills to even the match.
Christian County fell behind 4-0 to open the third set but forged six ties, the last at 16-16. Henderson’s inability to finish points reared its ugly head again as three attack errors allowed Christian County to claim the set 25-19.
Helping ignite the rally was the strong service game of Cansler and the play of Jazzy Tejada off the bench, who gave her team two kills and a block.
“She’s a big block coming in and we love that,” said Christian County coach Samantha Self. “She’s been getting a lot more comfortable with her coverage and her big swings.”
Another 4-0 deficit to start the fourth set proved too much for Christian County to overcome.
“I hate to have to dig out of a hole every time, but they really stuck together. They kept talking to each other, they kept trusting each other, and they kept on working through the plays no matter what,” Self said.
Cansler had 18 kills for Christian County, and Kiley Lamber added 10. Cantrell had five blocks at the net, and Ashlea Russell had 32 assists.
Christian County’s final season ends at 20-17 as they were trying to reach their first region title game since 2015.
“I told them I could not be more proud of them. They have nothing to hang their head about. They played a phenomenal game,” Self said.
The loss also marked the final match for seniors Cansler, Russell, Kaidence Atwell, and Shiloh Baker, who won 64 matches in four seasons.
“What a way to finish out as a fantastic group. Those four seniors have given me everything that they possibly could, and I couldn’t ask for anything more. They’re a great group of players and phenomenal people. I’ve really been thankful for the time that I’ve had with them,” Self said.
Now begins an interesting offseason for Christian County, which will combine with Hopkinsville High for a new combined school next fall.
“That (coaching) job is not a guarantee for me, but no matter who it is, those girls are gonna be just fine,” Self said. “They’re going to have to really compete for time on the court, but at the same time, iron sharpens iron sharpens iron so they’re gonna be great.”
Henderson County (27-9) moves into Thursday’s championship match against defending region champion Heritage Christian Academy. The Lady Warriors kept the title match from being an All-Sixth District affair with a four-set win over Webster County.
The Lady Colonels beat HCA in three sets on October 9, with two of the three sets decided by less than three points. They also took a four-set win on Sept. 9.
Thursday’s championship match will begin at 6:00 at Hopkins County Central High School.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS FROM THE MATCH
