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Oak Ridge Lady War Eagles run through Tomball Memorial in three sets

By: Jason Halpert, WOL Sports
| Published 08/19/2014

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TOMBALL, Texas- The Oak Ridge Lady War Eagles (7-2) took to the road and faced Tomball Memorial tonight in non-district play, upending the Wildcats by a score of 25-18, 25-23, 25-15. The convincing contest has the Lady War Eagles feeling the momentum heading into the Magnolia Tournament this weekend.

I definitely think we are maturing and bonding together,” said Lady War Eagle head coach Tommie Lynne Sledge. “Us gelling together, and how much they enjoy each other both on and off the court, is special.”

The game started off with the young guns of the Lady War Eagles taking command, with freshman Carly Graham serving, and an overhead smash by sophomore Brooke Clark to score the first point of the match. After another attack and serving point by Clark, the first set was tied at three.

This trend continued for Oak Ridge, who saw the score balloon to 6-3. However, a few errors and good play from Tomball Memorial evened the score at 6-6, when University of Cincinnati commit Victoria Harris hit a cross-court dagger that got Oak Ridge back on track, leading 8-6.

“This team is very steady. Errors or missed serves, they never drop down. They don’t play a rollercoaster game,” said Sledge. “They don’t let their emotions get into the game as much as maybe we have in the past.”

The first set continued at a quick pace, with teams trading points and playing at a fairly equal level, however momentum swung to the Lady War Eagle’s side and caused the Wildcats to take a timeout with the score 16-11 Oak Ridge. From this point forward, the teams swapped points until the set ended on a Harris attack with a score of 25-18.

The second set started where the first finished, with a combo block by senior Layce Neeley and Clark, and within a blink of an eye the score was 3-1. However Tomball Memorial wasn’t going to go away easily and they started playing some strong volleyball, sending the game into a seesaw contest with no one taking charge of the set. After a few putaways and an error by the Lady War Eagles, the Wildcats had grabbed an 11-8 lead which required a timeout by Oak Ridge.

Asked what made the second set start off so tight, Sledge was quick to comment.

“Missed serves,” chuckled Sledge. “ We have aggressive sets, so it’s not something we are going to pull back on, but we will get more consistent throughout the season.”

The lead opened up to 14-8 before Oak Ridge mounted the comeback. After reeling off five points in a row, capped with a Clark ace making the score 14-13, Tomball Memorial was the team in need of a timeout. This time, the momentum stayed with Oak Ridge, who rallied off eight points in a row to regain the lead, 16-14. An ace by junior Summer Buck made the score 18-16, and the rest of the set stayed within two points, with both teams taking turns with the lead. After a back and forth last point that saw four exchanges of possession, a putaway by the Lady War Eagles ended the set 25-23.

The third set was played similar to the second, with both teams scoring with relative ease. After a Harris attack that wasn’t returned, the score was tied at four, and neither team could garner an advantage. After another Clark ace (she had a team high seven for the match) made the score 10-9, Oak Ridge started to see some separation.

“They’re fireballs,” said Sledge about her team. “I see us being aggressive all year long.”

Until this point, the entire set was played within two points, but after going up 13-10, Oak Ridge consistently stayed ahead by at least three. Eventually, the margin widened for Oak Ridge, with the lead growing as high as ten as the final point was scored, finishing the set and thus the match, 25-15.

Leading the way for the Lady War Eagles was Victoria Harris with 15 kills and 10 digs. Brooke Clarke had 17 kills to go along with those seven aces, and Jackie Ward lead the team in setting people up with 20 assists. Four players had double digit digs, including Raigen Cianciulli with 10, Carly Graham with 13, Harris with 10, and Ward with 14.

Next up for the Oak Ridge Lady War Eagles is the Magnolia tournament this weekend, August 21-23, featuring conference foes like The Woodlands and Atascocita, along with others. For Sledge, she hopes the team continues to play like it did tonight.

“It’s kind of the team’s MO,” said Sledge. “They find their groove and when they do, I don’t even have to say anything. They just have it.”

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