Hiwassee Dam beats Andrews at home; Cats returns home to defeat Union Co.
Hiwassee Dam – To kick off their week, the Hiwassee Dam Lady Eagles’ volleyball team picked up a 3-0 win over the Andrews Lady Wildcats.
The Lady Cats (4-6) hit the road to take on cross-county rivals Hiwassee Dam (2-8) on Sept. 10. The Lady Eagles got off to an early lead in the first set.
From the get-go, Hiwassee Dam had a boisterous student section that fueled them. By the second timeout of the first set, the Lady Eagles led 15-4.
As the first set progressed, the Lady Cats stayed in the set, just a step behind. The Lady Cats cut away at the large lead the Lady Eagles amassed.
As the Lady Eagles inched toward the 25-point mark, the Lady Cats rallied to score multiple consecutive points, prompting a Lady Eagles’ timeout as the deficit was cut to three points. The Lady Eagles powered through coming out of the timeout and won the set 25-22.
Hiwassee Dam jumped out to an 11-4 lead early in the second set. Andrews began to close the gap early and trailed 14-10 when the Lady Eagles called a timeout.
Afterward, Hiwassee Dam scored multiple consecutive points to take control of the set again. Andrews again stayed in the set, but were beat again as the Lady Eagles won the second set 25-21 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Hiwassee Dam kept rolling into the third set where they were one set from winning the match. They took an early lead and maintained it throughout the third set. Andrews brought their deficit to two points late in the set, but the Lady Eagles used their momentum to pull away and win the third set 25-19 and get the 3-0 match win.
“They played much better,” Lady Eagles head coach Angie Davis said. “Going back, we reviewed film we just beat ourselves in the last game, so this week we worked on cleaning our game up and they came in and honed in on their skills, and it paid off.”
The Lady Wildcats returned home to host Union County, Ga. (12-11) on Thursday, when they won a tight game 3-1.
The Andrews student section made their presence known, loudly cheering with each point the Lady Cats scored. From the beginning of the first set until the end of the match, it was closely contested between the two, but the Lady Wildcats prevailed with the win.
Andrews won the first set 25-20, but the Lady Panthers won the second set 25-20 to level the match at one set apiece.
The third set was the biggest gap in scoring, with Andrews winning by 14 points. The Lady Panthers’ height became more apparent in the third set with them winning multiple points at the net.
After being close early, Andrews pulled away to a dominant 25-11 set win. To cap off their rally and win the set, Mady Queen had multiple good serves and got the set win with an ace.
Andrews had a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth set. Union took an early lead and let for most of the set. About halfway through the set, they tied, then Union County took the lead.
Late in the set, Kylie Donaldson made strong serves for Andrews and took a late 23-22 lead. Union County took a timeout as they lost the lead they held most of the set.
Coming out of the timeout, Andrews battled and scored three straight points to win the match. The Lady Cats and the fans exploded with excitement when they scored the game-winning point.
Against Union County, Beth Shook led in two stat categories with 12 kills and 13 digs. Donaldson had nine kills, five aces, six digs and two assists. Kaiya Ellis led the team with 20 assists. Ellis also had two aces, one kill and two digs.
Juliet Holloway had six kills, five aces, four digs and one block. Queen had three kills, four aces, four digs and two assists. Chanteah Rattler had three digs and two assists. Lauren White had one kill, six digs and one assist.
Caitlynn Thompson had three digs and Allie Gibson had one kill and nine digs.
“Tonight was the best I’ve seen them play all season. It’s the team that as coaches, we know that’s inside of them and finally we talk a lot about their potential and tonight they worked up and they played at their potential,” Mustin said after Thursday’s win. “Coming off of the loss against Hiwassee Dam, we talked about adversity and how true leaders rise up out of adversity, and they did that tonight.”
Speaking on who stood out to Mustin against Union County, she said, “As a team, I don’t think there was one person that just ran the show tonight. It was a true team effort by everybody, especially our seniors.”
Mustin mentioned Beth Shook and Kylie Donaldson for their net play and serves. Mustin said Shook had her best hitting game of the season against Union County.
She added that Caitlynn Thompson did well in positions she usually does not play, and also Allie Gibson for her strong passing. Mady Queen’s serving also stood out to Mustin.
It was probably the best game Mustin said she has seen Kaiya Ellis play. Lauren White also stood out for her serves and defense.
Mustin said Rattler stood out for her constant plays and all-around defense, as well as Holloway, who was dialed in with her serving and aggressive play at the net.
The Wildcats’ next game is Thursday on the road at Hayesville at 6 p.m. They return home Tuesday, Sept. 24, to face Swain County at 6 p.m.
The Lady Eagles’ next game is at home Thursday against Union County, Ga., at 6 p.m. They will then host Robbinsville on Monday at 5 p.m.