Eagles eliminate Titans
By Andrew Stevens
Published in Sports on October 28, 2009 1:47 PM
Style points aren't a necessity in the postseason.
Finding ways to play through swings in momentum and a lack of execution are.
Rosewood fought through some shaky moments on its way to a 25-17, 25-21, 25-20 win over visiting Heide Trask in the second round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 1-A volleyball playoffs on Tuesday evening.
The Eagles (15-9 overall) visit Pender on Thursday.
Taylor Johnson and Rachael Kornegay each contributed four kills for Rosewood in the opening set. The Eagles reeled of six unanswered points to claim a 12-3 lead, and Megan Tyndall added a pair of kills down the stretch to help fend off the Titans.
The Eagles struggled to pass and serve with consistency for most of the match. Johnson had several textbook kill opportunities fail to clear the net, while teammates couldn't find the touch on their serves.
"I don't think we played as well as we did on Saturday," said Rosewood head coach Jennifer Cochran. "They put more pressure on us than Union did. We won, but I'll take it. I just don't know what's going to happen on Thursday. We're really going to have to play a whole lot better than that."
A 9-0 run midway through the second set gave the Eagles a 21-13 cushion. Johnson tallied four aces during that stretch, and Kornegay and Tyndall both provided kills.
The Titans led 11-4 early in set three before a timeout served as a wake-up call for Rosewood. The Eagles responded with a 10-2 run to take a 14-13 lead. Kornegay pounded out three kills and Tyndall added an ace.
"I think when we got on top they just folded," said Cochran. "When we have to we can turn it on and when we don't need to we don't. We do just enough to keep it close. If that team got back in the game they would probably have won it in five."
Johnson took over late in the third set with four kills and a block. She finished with 13 kills and Kornegay had 12 kills.
"We just play together," said Cochran. "When we're having a hard time, they somehow pull it together. We did real well with broken plays tonight. When the ball didn't go to the setter, we did a good job of getting it back across the net."