By Thomas Sellers Jr.
Developing a young team, expect a roller coaster season. Coming into Thursday’s showdown with the Trinity Christian Academy Lady Lions, the Tipton-Rosemark Academy Lady Rebels were enjoying their peak.
The Lady Rebels won a five-set game against Sacred Heart after trailing two sets. In the early moments against TCA, the Lady Rebels’ set-winning streak was five in a row. After sweeping the final three sets from Sacred Heart Sept. 7, the Lady Rebels beat TCA 25-20 and 25-21 to start the night in the TRA Gymnasium.
But the joy TRA experienced two nights prior winning a five-set game after losing the first two sets would soon be felt by the Lady Lions.
TCA regrouped and took advantage of TRA miscues to prevail 25-22, 25-23 and 15-9.
“It was just miscommunication,” TRA Head Coach Amy Weatherington acknowledged. “Communication errors, hesitation, people thinking someone else is going to go for the ball. There were too many drop balls.”
Another factor causing the Lady Rebels to never get a rhythm was the official’s whistle. Throughout the five sets against TCA, the double violation was called. TRA setters were penalized for bad sets.
“It’s my opinion that most of those were not doubles,” Weatherington said. “It’s a judgement call. And a lot of refs call double if the ball is spinning which doesn’t mean it is a double. There was nothing I could do.”
TRA did a lot of things right in the first two sets led by players like Lydia Harvey, Ella McIntosh, Hannah Frye, Kayla Clements and Alice Sigler. Even Lady Rebel Addie Thorpe contributed with an ace early in the first set. With the score 7-6, TRA surged ahead with McIntosh serving. A Sigler block at the net made the score 12-7 in favor of TRA.
TCA rallied to deadlock the opening set at 14-14. Clements gave the Lady Rebels some breathing room with a couple of aces. Harvey made a few athletic plays down the stretch to help TRA win 25-20.The second set Harvey was the driving force giving the Lady Rebels a 25-21 win. Harvey served five aces in a row to make the score 9-2 early in the frame.
Once again the Lady Lions roared back to make the score 13-12 in favor of TRA. Harvey executed a kill and tip to help the Lady Rebels nurse their slim advantage. Harvey scored on a hit to make the tally 21-15. The Lady Rebels scored the four points needed to take a two set lead.
Then the Lady Lions edged out TRA by three points in the third set. In the fourth frame, TRA appeared ready to win the game ahead 21-18. But TCA stole the set with a 7-2 run to close out the fourth set. In the fifth set, errors doomed TRA and TCA executed down the stretch to win by 6 points. “It just comes down to they wanted it,” Weatherington concluded. “And it was no all heart.
That has been our motto the past two years. I keep preaching it to them, ‘It’s not just about saying you want it. It’s not just acting like you want it. It’s actual bodies on the floor, bruises on the hip and things like that.’ We took our foot off the gas in the third set and started cruising and we can’t do that.”
