Robbinsville gets early test from Cherokee
Robbinsville – Going into Tuesday’s conference opener, the Lady Knights seemingly held all the cards.
A rare seven-day gap in-between matches had allowed Robbinsville to fine-tune its mechanics, while also giving way to film sessions and some much-needed rest – a welcome option for a team that sawed through five matches across the first nine days of the campaign.
But the first set of the divisional opener against Cherokee looked – in a word – clunky. Robbinsville just could not into a tempo. Communication errors on the floor led to balls dropping that would have otherwise been easily volleyed. Serves were either too high or too low.
And a talented Lady Braves’ squad took full advantage, clinching set one 25-20.
The Knights finally garnered their first lead of the match at the midway point of set two and slowly, the pieces fell back together. Robbinsville went on to make the opening set a distant memory, as the Lady Knights sent Cherokee packing to the tune of a 25-20, 21-25, 21-25, 20-25 triumph.
“I just don’t think we were mentally checked in,” Robbinsville head coach Kadey Phillips observed. “We made some mistakes that were easily avoidable.
“We definitely did not play our best game, but we pulled it off in the end.”
Phillips was complementary of one glaring positive from the match, however – how the younger core of Lady Knights’ stepped up when the veterans struggled. In a sign of things to come, freshman libero Suri Watty – plus sophomores Claire Barlow and Liz Carpenter, as well as junior Aubrie Wachacha, all front-line hitters – shined in the deciding set. Watty’s back-row defense saved several would-be Braves points as the match waned on, while Barlow, Carpenter and Wachacha simply dominated with blocks and kills that dashed Cherokee’s hopes of forcing a tie-breaking fifth set.
“They stepped up tonight,” Phillips said. “Claire had some good blocks that were very crucial at that point in the game. Liz had some strong kills. Suri really turned it around quick after the first set, too.”
Regardless of the shaky outing, Robbinsville (4-2, 1-0) will now have to set its sights forward. Murphy (6-1, 1-0) pays a visit to Graham County today.
“I believe that if we play the way we know how to play, we can compete,” Phillips concluded.
JV, middle school
The preliminary matches Tuesday resulted in mixed outcomes for the Knights.
Robbinsville (2-3) swept Cherokee 15-25, 16-25 in the junior-varsity showcase, while the middle school Lady Knights – playing their first match in two weeks – hung tough against the Braves, before dropping to 0-2 in a 25-16, 25-14 match.