By Luke Nadkarni / Scrimmageplaycva.com contributor
The William Monroe volleyball team made quick work of visiting Brentsville in the 3A East Region quarterfinals Tuesday night in Stanardsville, sweeping three sets 25-13, 25-8 and 25-20 for a 3-0 victory.
After winning the first three points of the match, the Greene Dragons allowed the Tigers to tie the first set at three before winning 12 of the next 13 points to break the game open. Monroe coasted from there for a 1-0 advantage.
“It was kind of hard to judge because we’ve never played [Brentsville],” Monroe head coach Ken Lawson said. “But we did everything we needed to do. We only had two service errors–we like to keep it under five. When you beat a team convincingly, it’s kind of hard to pick out issues.”
The second set was an even more impressive display from the Dragons as they raced out to a 9-1 advantage, aided by a pair of kills from Breanna Strother. After Brentsville closed the gap to 9-5, William Monroe rattled off the next eight points to put the set out of reach. Brentsville’s Suzanne Catlin put an end to the run with a kill on the next rally, but the Dragons were not to be denied, allowing the Tigers just two more points the rest of the set.
Set number three looked as if it would be a repeat of the previous two, as the Dragons picked up right where they left off, winning eight of the first 10 points and stretching the margin to 14-6 midway through the set. Then the Tigers woke up, going on a 10-2 run to knot the score at 16. But Olivia Shifflett turned the tide back in Monroe’s favor with back-to-back kills for an 18-16 lead, and the Dragons held on from there. Shifflett totaled five kills on the evening.
“Olivia blocked and hit well for us,” Lawson said. “She’s our go-to player.”
Lawson was also pleased with how his team responded following Brentsville’s run and had no doubts that his team would put the Tigers away.
“We subbed out, made a change, and were able to get right back on it,” Lawson said. “I knew we would take care of business in three.”
The Dragons will meet Warhill on Thursday night on a neutral floor at Spotsylvania High School with a state tournament berth on the line.
