W'boro shocks Draft

Now Waynesboro thinks it can do anything.

After splitting the first round of Southern Valley play, the Little Giants picked up a four-game win over their biggest rival, Stuarts Draft. The Little Giants traded the opening two games 25-16, 26-28 before winning the final two 26-24, 25-17 to go back above .500 in the Southern Valley District.

“I couldn’t be more happy for the girls,” said Waynesboro coach Lori Aleshire. “We played very well tonight; we played like a team. I couldn’t expect more.”

After the match, Stuarts Draft coach Kami Meeteer said the Little Giants had improved since the two teams’ last meeting on Aug. 28 when the Cougars swept Waynesboro.

“We’ve seen all the teams, but Waynesboro is a different team than what we saw before,” she said. “You just have to go off what you have seen before.”

Draft was previously undefeated in the Southern Valley.

The Giants have struggled all season when playing from behind, but on Tuesday they came together. Waynesboro trailed at least once in every game, and won Game 1 after trailing 5-0.

The Cougars started the first game with a 5-0 run that included an Erin Brown ace, before a Jolie Dudly kill and two Rachel Binda kills sparked a 5-0 Waynesboro run to knot the game.

After trading the lead, a Dudley ace gave Waynesboro the momentum to start pulling away. With a 13-10 lead, Waynesboro’s Norah Curtis hit three straight aces to give Waynesboro a 16-10 lead.

“When we start with momentum we do alright, but they pulled from behind and that just happens with intensity. They have the ability, they just have to use it,” Aleshire said.

The Cougars were unable to claw back into the game, and a Binda Ace sealed the game 25-16 in Waynesboro’s favor.

“I think we just play well as a team,” Binda said. “We talked to each other and that’s something we’ve struggled with all season. We didn’t get down mentally, we kept up our mental game.”

Things looked to be back to normal when the Cougars quickly took a 7-2 lead in the second game after a pair of Brown aces and two kills from Kamron Johnson, but the Giants slowly climbed back into it to tie the game at 14.

Draft couldn’t return a Caroline Campbell serve and Linsay Iseli got caught in the net to allow Waynesboro to take a 16-14 lead, but Draft wouldn’t fall down.

“They were being really aggressive, and when you’re being aggressive, you can get caught in the net. I’m glad they’re being aggressive,” Meeteer said.

The two teams stayed within two points of each other until the game was knotted at 25. Draft took the one-point advantage when Waynesboro’s communication broke down and the ball fell to the floor uncontested, but a bad draft serve tied the game again

The Cougars finally tied the match 1-1 after an Aliya Stevenson kill and an Ariel Christy ace.

The third game was just as tight, but Waynesboro came out on the winning end. The score was tied at 24, but Katie Doyle snuck a dink by the tall Cougar front and Jolie Dudly and Shayla Jackson combined for a block to win the game 26-24.

Waynesboro cruised after the third game win to easily walk away with a 25-17 win in the final game.

The Little Giants (7-6, 3-2 Southern Valley) won’t get a break and have to face Turner Ashby in Waynesboro on Thursday.

“TA is a tough game, but I think this will help them,” Aleshire said.

Stuarts Draft (8-5, 4-1 Southern Valley) will be on the road on Thursday, traveling to Broadway.