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Lady Mustangs stop county rival on road
SMHS's Mellisa Collins Herald photo by Carey Phillips

Melissa Collins passes the ball for Smoky Mountain in last Thursday's victory at Blue Ridge.

Smoky Mountain blitzed county rival Blue Ridge in the first game but had to come from behind in game three to secure a 15-0, 15-7, 15-12 volleyball victory last Thursday at Blue Ridge.

"It was our first match on the road this year," Coach Cindi Simmons said. ³We overcame some serving trouble at times. Blue Ridge provided us with a needed challenge in the third game."

Blue Ridge missed its first four serves, but the Lady Mustangs led only 3-0 until Lindsey Lewis reeled off 11 unanswered points. The flurry resulted in a 14-0 lead and included two aces along with kills by Kaitlin Ritchie, Katie Loughlin and Melissa Collins. The game ended on Collins' ace.

Game two was much more competitive but Collins ran off six straight points, including three aces, for a 12-6 advantage. The spurt included a pair of kills by Loughlin. Ritchie's ace clinched the game.

The Lady Bobcats went up 5-2 in the third game after four points from Jennifer Sherrill. The Lady Mustangs responded with five in a row from Abbey Higgins and a Lewis kill to lead 7-5. Blue Ridge tied it 11-11 on four points, including an ace, by Sherrill. After Amanda Russell's serve put Blue Ridge up 12-11, Tara Green served four points giving SM the victory.

SMHS's Jennifer Sherrill Herald photo by Carey Phillips

Blue Ridge's Jennifer Sherrill (24) goes for a kill last Thursday in a loss to Smoky Mountain.

Ritchie led in kills with 11 while Lewis had 10 kills and two blocks. Loughlin added five kills. Collins and Higgins finished with 15 assists each.

Lewis and Collins served 15 and 10 points, respectively. Sherrill led Blue Ridge with seven.

Green served 90 percent. Shay Shular didn't miss in three opportunities. The Lady Mustangs served 88 percent as a team.

The Lady Mustang JVs won 15-12, 15-8. Ryan Cook served eight points in the second game.

"I'm happy everybody got to play," Coach Nikki Young said. "There are still some things we need to work on, but we're improving with every game."

Back to Sports: 08/24/00.