The Woodlands Lady Highlanders volleyball team take College Park Cavaliers in four sets

THE WOODLANDS, Texas-- The only concern The Woodlands Lady Highlanders had prior to their matchup with the College Park Cavaliers Friday, was whether they could contain the Cavaliers to three sets or would they be forced to go the distance for the first time in regular season play. The Highlanders haven’t dropped a match, or even a set since the Pearland tournament, beating previous opponents in three straight sets on their 16-game winning streak, which had them up to 23-2, and 2-0 in district play before today's game.

The competitive advantage for the Cavaliers, with a 20-4 record, 1-0 in district, would be to force the matchup to five sets, in order to capitalize on The Highlanders previous short matches. The Lady Highlanders Coach, Leslie Madison, knew that College Park would be a more formidable foe, and commented on it after the victory over Atascocita this past Tuesday.

“We have a really big match on Friday (against College Park),” said Madison.”I think it will be a good match. They have a really talented team with a lot of good players.”

Coach Candice Collins echoed the same sentiments before the game started.

“This is going to be a really challenging match,,’ said Collins. “I think it will go five sets, but we’re ready for them.”

Leading the way for the Highlanders was Courtney Quinn with a monstrous game, finishing with 18 kills and 14 digs. Kendall Cook 37 assists and 13 digs, and Rachel Reed has 13 kills. Colby Quinn and Hailey Reier had 12 digs each.

For the Cavaliers, Kennedi Smith had 17 kills and 16 digs to lead the College Park attack. Hannah Erwin ended her night with 18 assists, and Savannah Rutledge finished with a team high 20 digs.

FIRST SET:

Both teams matched up well with neither team dominating the set. The longest volley was won by College Park with a crosscourt shot by #9 Emily Thorson, 6’ 1” senior . That set the tone for the rest of the set as the Cavaliers let their presence be known, trading points with the Highlanders. It wasn’t until late in the match before College Park took the lead with a kill shot from #7 Kennedi Smith, the up-and-coming 5’8” junior, going on to win the set 25-23, thus handing the Highlanders their first lost set after 48 consecutive sets ending with a win.

SECOND SET:

Undaunted by the loss of the first set, the Lady Highlanders finally hit their stride when both teams hit double digits. TWHS surged ahead after #7 Hannah Hickman’s (6’ senior) crosscourt kill; gaining momentum, then surging ahead to widen the gap, and winning the set decisively 25-17.

THIRD SET:

The Highlanders continued to wear down the Cavaliers, exploiting the weak spots and dominating the set. One who was especially adept at knowing where to place the shots were #11 Courtney Quinn, the 5’9” Senior, who had several kills throughout the game, and was especially on target in the third set with an early crosscourt kill. An ace by #4 Kendall Cook, 6’ senior, doubled the score at 12-6. The margin never narrowed, thanks to consistent kill shots by #7 Hickman, #11 Quinn, and #8 Rachel Reed, 6’1” senior. The set ended with a devastating score of 25-12. College Park’s #7 Smith, worked hard with digs, blocks, and a kill, to keep the drive alive.

FOURTH SET:

It was deja vu all over again as the Highlanders jumped out with an early lead in the fourth set and once again, doubled the score 16-8, with kills by #8 Reed, #11 Quinton, and company. It looked like TWHS would make easy work of the fourth set, but good teams find a way to fight back, and the Cavaliers did. When the score reached 20-13, College Park’s #9 Thorson and #7 Smith provided a much-needed rally with some kill shots of their own. The longest volley of this set was taken by the Cavaliers as they battled back, but in the end they fell with a score of 25-21 Highlanders.

College Park coach, Candice Collins was asked if she was pleased with pushing the Lady Highlanders to a lately unprecedented fourth set. She replied,”We came here fully intending to win this match. There are some things we need to improve on, and we’ll make some adjustments. Next time we play this team, we’ll be stronger.”

The Lady Highlanders haven’t been pushed to four sets in their last sixteen games. TWHS coach, Leslie Madison, was asked if they had expected this.

“They’re a good team (College Park). We knew they would play hard, but this team (TWHS) is well-conditioned, and I knew they wouldn’t have a problem if we had to the distance,” said Coach Madison.

Asked if they were ready for possibly a harder fight from Oak Ridge, with an impressive 22-3 record, next Friday (September 26) Woodlands’ Hannah Hickman, one of the standout players in TWHS vs CP game, said, “They (Oak Ridge) play well as a team. We expect them to be a strong team too, but we’re ready for them.”

The Woodlands Lady Highlanders now have an impressive 24-2 record; 3-0 in district play. College Park’s record is now 20-5; 1-1 in district. These two teams will meet again on October 14, at College Park. With more season play behind them, their next meeting will be an even harder fight to the finish.