Burke presented first win as CBA head volleyball coach

By Andrew Stevens
Published in Sports on August 21, 2013 1:47 PM

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astevens@newsargus.com

PIKEVILLE -- Since her playing days and her time as an assistant coach at Charles B. Aycock, Emily Burke has dreamed of being the head volleyball coach at her alma mater.

Burke saw her dreams come true and notched her first win as a head coach on Tuesday evening. The Golden Falcons overcame a shaky first set and rallied past Greene Central 22-25, 25-9, 25-23, 25-12.

"This is where I grew up," Burke said. "The girls that I have now this is my second senior class since when I started (as an assistant coach). So, I'm proud to be able to coach them all the way through.

"Aycock is a big family and your family loves when you get to move up and do the things you've always wanted to do. When I was in high school this is what I wanted to do. Having that come true whether you win or lose is awesome and the win makes it better obviously."

Aycock faltered down the stretch of the opening set as the Rams took advantage of the Golden Falcons' unforced errors.

"We kind of woke up and saw that they couldn't play complacent and without intensity," Burke said. "We've added a different defense with the double-block and they're getting used to playing with different people and we're subbing a lot.

"It's hard when you have a bunch of girls going in and out to learn to keep that intensity."

The Golden Falcons regrouped in the second set and played as a collective unit. Abigail Shenk and Morgan Foss each delivered a pair of aces as the Golden Falcons grabbed a 10-4 lead.

Aycock continued to move the ball well and find holes in the Rams' defense. Myleah Jones pounded out two kills, while Cierra Harris and Meredith Burroughs each added a kill to close out the set.

The third set turned into a back-and-forth affair that the Golden Falcons managed to claim largely due to their ability to get the ball to their middle hitters at critical times. Burroughs and Ashley Darden both supplied kills at key moments.

Darden contributed a kill that tied the set at 10-10 after Greene Central rallied from a 9-3 deficit and stole the momentum. Burroughs provided an important block and later turned in a kill that tied the set at 17-17.

Aycock capitalized on Rams' errors late in the set to prevail.

"Ashley has stepped up big time," Burke said. "This is Ashley's third year on varsity and it's amazing the growth she's made over the summer. She gives us that balance when Meredith is off the floor. They've stepped up and they're working together and talking to each other."

The Golden Falcons (1-0 overall) cruised through the fourth set as the Rams struggled to regain their intensity after dropping set three. Aycock recorded six aces in the final set and Jones tallied two more kills.