Robbinsville Lady Knights rolling through non-conference schedule
One-by-one, the Robbinsville Lady Knights have mowed down each opponent faced this season.
Now at 5-0 after a sweep over Highlands (1-3) on Tuesday night, the Knights’ unbeaten record is made more impressive when analyzing their opposition this season: two 3A schools, a private Asheville school and a pair of non-conference schools from the Jackson/Macon Plateau.
Robbinsville finished a manic run of five matches in its first eight days of the season with the 23-25, 11-25, 24-26 sweep over the Lady Highlanders. After prevailing in a 5-set war against Franklin to begin the season, the Lady Knights traveled to Cashiers and swept the Blue Ridge Lady Bobcats 25-20, 25-11, 25-17 on Aug. 18; swept the Asheville Independent School Lady Blues 15-25, 15-25, 24-26 on Aug. 19; and triumphed 20-25, 25-16, 12-25, 17-25 against Smoky Mountain (3-1) on Monday.
“I know we’re all exhausted, but I feel like it (the heavy schedule) has given us an edge,” said Lady Knights head coach Kadey Phillips. “A lot of other teams are just now starting and we’ll be on our sixth game Thursday. We needed that, especially after the lull in summer workouts that we have.
“I have liked the new competition this year. With the new realignment, we have more flexibility with our scheduling. That’s why I’ve tried to add in some of these bigger schools. It gives our girls the competition they need, in order to be a better team. The best practice is to get out there and play.”
The trip to Cashiers gave some of Robbinsville’s depth a chance to show what it could do. Tai Owle, Phoebe Rattler, Zoie Shuler and Aubrie Wachacha each looked strong coming off the bench to fill in roles. In set two, outscored the Bobcats (0-2) 11-4 down the stretch.
Delaney Brooms and Yeika Jimenez both made significant impacts up front against Asheville Independent (1-1), compiling 12 and 16 respective kills against the Blues.
“We’ve definitely taken our offense to the next level,” Phillips noted. “We’re able to work in some plays and offensive options that we haven’t been able to in the past, so that’s nice to see. Our blocking – compared to previous seasons – I don’t know where that’s come from, but I’ll take it. I would have never described us as a strong blocking team, but we’ve finally getting touches on the ball this season.
Coach Phillips also extolled the virtues of the defense of her entire team throughout the early part of the campaign, noting the work of libero Halee Anderson, Brooms and Kensley Phillips on back-row defense.
“Our defense is definitely our strong suit,” coach Phillips observed. “We serve/receive very well and that’s kind of been the focus of our program for several years, so to see that come into play and win ball games is very rewarding.”
Highlands provided a tough battle in sets one and three. It took until set two for either team to build a lead bigger than three points – which was the Knights, who went on a 20-6 run after breaking a 5-5 tie early in the segment.
“One thing that I’m very proud of as a coach is that in years past, we weren’t able to make a lot of adjustments – like switching up the rotation – because it would get in the girls’ heads,” coach Phillips explained. “Tonight, in set two, we did that and the girls reaped the benefits.
“I can put them anywhere on the floor and they are able to play.”
After playing 4-of-5 at home to begin the year, Robbinsville will now embark on a 4-match road trip, beginning today at Asheville High School, before the Smoky Mountain Conference schedule begins Tuesday at Swain. The trip continues Thursday, Sept. 2 at Cherokee and ends Tuesday, Sept. 9 at Murphy.
JV, middle school
Robbinsville’s junior varsity Lady Knights (3-1) have put a season-opening loss to Franklin in the rearview mirror, piecing together a winning streak to the tune of 25-23, 15-25 and 11-15 against Asheville Independent School, 22-25, 20-25 against Smoky Mountain and a 24-26, 21-25 sweep over Highlands. The middle school Lady Knights (1-0) bested the Martins Creek Lady Hornets in the season opener Aug. 19: 12-25, 25-15, 9-15.