Warrior spikers cruise past So. Wayne
By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on September 10, 2010 1:46 PM
DUDLEY -- Coming off a demoralizing loss, Eastern Wayne head volleyball coach Tony Parrish was interested to see how his team would respond against a county rival.
The Warriors responded in a big way Thursday afternoon.
Eastern Wayne battled through a slow first set, but dominated the second and third in a 25-20, 25-15, 25-20 win over county rival Southern Wayne. The victory was the team's first in Eastern Carolina 3-A Conference play in two seasons.
"I am so proud of the effort from my group tonight," said Parrish. "As disappointed as I was at Jones Senior (Wednesday) night, that's how happy I am right now."
Southern Wayne started strong in the opening set and claimed an 11-4 lead before Eastern Wayne was able to sustain a serve for consecutive points. The Warriors rallied back on the strength of two aces from Lura Hulse and a pair of kills by Jasmine Benjamin.
Clinging to a 20-19 advantage, the Warriors got back-to-back kills from Carissa Turner and Benjamin to secure the victory.
"The biggest part of the comeback in the first set was getting some serves in play," said Parrish. "My philosophy is that any way to get the ball over the net and in bounds is fine, but it's still up to the players to execute."
After the Warriors cruised through the second set, the Saints rebounded and played inspired early in the third. A pair of aces by Taylor Hood gave the Southern Wayne a 7-5 lead, but the momentum was short-lived as Eastern Wayne reeled off eight of the next nine points and eventually pulled away.
Benjamin led the Warriors with five kills. Hulse added three kills and three aces.
Southern Wayne was paced offensively by Madison Davis' six-kill performance. The Saints (1-5 overall, 0-2 ECC) travel to South Johnston on Tuesday.
Eastern Wayne (3-9, 1-1) entertains Charles B. Aycock on Tuesday.