PH wins again: For the fourth season in a row, the Patrick Henry Patriots are the champions of the Western Valley District. The Patriots (15-8) defeated Franklin County 3-1 on November 5th to clinch a home game in the Northwest region tournament.
“We’re such a young team, but I feel like we’ve improved every day in practice,” Head Coach Patricia Sheedy said. “It’s really exciting, both for now and for the future of our program.”
Despite a rotation that includes four freshman and two sophomores, the Patriots thrived in district play, going undefeated in 10 matches. Liz Brailsford, recently named WVD Player of the Year, leads the team in kills and set a VHSL record for number of kills in one match in a September 19th contest against Deep Run High School with 42.
The Patriots had been hoping to win a Northwest Region title for the first time in over a decade, but their dream ended Tuesday night with a 3-1 loss to Osbourn Park. The two teams had already met once this season, where the Yellow Jackets also prevailed 3-1.
Knights Looking Strong: Cave Spring wrapped up the River Ridge District title with a 3-1 win over the Hidden Valley Titans on November 5th. (The Titans will also advance to the postseason however.)
The Knights (20-3) have won 11 matches in a row, and 20 of their last 21, despite not possessing the prototypical height of most dominant teams.
“Our tallest girl is maybe 5’8” or 5’9”,” Head Coach Tamalyn Tanis said. “We’re really small, and without much size, we’re not a team that can fool around, we have to play smart.”
Led by All-District performers Morgan Shannon, Taylor Baumann, and Jocelyn Kellinger, the Knights have perfected their own style of play, which has baffled their opponents.
“We play really fast, with a quick offense and quick transitions,” Tanis explained. “We’re trying to create one-on-one opportunities for our girls so that we don’t face a double-block. We’re just trying to find holes – the other teams can’t cover everything.”
Despite their limitations, the team has embraced the strategy, which led to an undefeated season within a highly competitive River Ridge District that produced two state semifinalists last fall.
“The girls just know how they have to play in order to be successful, and they’ve become more confident as they have seen that it works, and that they can trust it,” Tanis said.
After a 3-0 win in the first round of the region tournament against Marion, the Knights await the Patrick County – Tazewell matchup. A win there would probably lead to a fourth match against the rival Titans. The Knights have swept all three, but according to their coach, the contests have been very competitive.
“They have a great offense and we have a great defense, and so far it’s just happened that our defense has won out,” Tanis said. “But each match has gotten closer and closer.”
By Matt Reeve [email protected]
