SUNRISE REGION: Agae, new look Skyhawks rally past Basic
Silverado volleyball coach Kahealani Roston had a feeling her team was being watched prior to Tuesday’s Division I Sunrise Region tournament opener at Green Valley.
Fearing Basic knew all her team’s secrets, Roston moved some players around on the court, a plan that nearly backfired.
The Skyhawks fell behind early, but recovered with the help of Kayla Agae’s 16 kills, five blocks and two aces to rally past the Wolves 20-25, 25-21, 25-16, 23-25, 15-12.
“We were trying something different tonight,” said Roston, who played several players out of position for the first four sets. “I knew we were being looked at, so I needed to do something different because I knew what they would be expecting us to do.”
Basic (14-16) was not fooled in the first set, as senior middle hitter Leah Causey took over early to lead her team to a relatively easy 25-20 win.
“We started off with the jitters,” Agae said. “But once we got that out of our system, we did really well.”
Silverado (11-6) stormed back to win the second set, with Agae ending it with an emphatic kill.
It appeared Roston’s plan had taken full effect when the Skyhawks cruised to an 8-1 lead on the way to an easy victory in the third set.
“I think everyone was starting to understand the changes,” Roston said. “They knew what they were supposed to do.”
But the Wolves battled back with a late rally in the fourth, thanks largely to Causey, who finished with 18 kills and three aces. After tying the score at 23, they surged to the victory on an ace by Causey and a perfectly placed kill up the middle by Victoria Foutz.
“In the fourth, I think we probably let up a little bit,” Roston said. “But a lot of inconsistent passing also hurt us.”
Roston opted to go back to her traditional lineup in the final set, a move that worked. Silverado took control midway through the set and hung on to win it on a foul by the Wolves.
“I’m very proud of the girls,” Roston said. “They fought to the end, and they did it together.”
Lauren Purdy helped Silverado with eight kills, and teammate Amari Norris added five kills and four blocks.
Foutz helped Basic with 13 kills and two blocks.
Silverado plays Coronado in Thursday’s semifinal match at 5:20 p.m.
Foothill 3, Las Vegas 0 — Zoe Wolfenbarger had 19 kills and 14 assists to help the Falcons (21-13) roll to a 25-20, 31-29, 25-21 victory over the Wildcats (11-19).
Samantha Douglas had 22 assists, seven kills and three aces to help Foothill, and teammate Rebecca Hill added eight kills and four blocks.
Marissa Lair (12 kills), Matti Ventling (24 assists) and Anjelica Ashworth (15 digs) each contributed for Las Vegas.
Foothill plays Green Valley in the semifinals at 2 p.m. on Thursday.
Coronado 3, Rancho 0 — Carolyn Andrulis had 11 digs and 10 kills to help the Cougars cruise past the Rams, 25-10, 25-12, 25-12.
Cali Thompson aided Coronado (23-8) with 23 assists and three aces, and teammate Berkeley Oblad had four kills and two blocks.
Danielle Carino and Kayla Coles had nine digs apiece to lead Rancho (13-18). Teammate Monet Wilson added five assists and four digs.
Green Valley 3, Liberty 0 — Carly Schiess and Bridgette Dwyer each had 11 kills to lift the Gators over the Patriots, 25-11, 25-11, 25-12.
Nikki Drost added 10 kills and two aces for Green Valley (30-4).
Jazmin O’Bannon and Carina Gargantos each had two kills and two blocks for Liberty (4-17), and Alyssa Helms added three kills.