By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Fair Grove, Mo. — The purple school’s on a pretty good run as of late.
Less than a week after downing arch-rival Strafford on the gridiron, Fair Grove notched another big win over the Indians with a thrilling, three-set victory on the volleyball court (25-20, 24-26, 25-15).
Playing to a capacity crowd, the Lady Eagles stormed out to an early, 4-0 lead in the opening set behind a pair of kills from senior Alana Findley.
Fair Grove head coach Tonya Peck stressed the importance of seizing the early momentum with a fast start.
“My girls do a great job starting a game,” Peck said. “They come out in the first set and are usually on fire and ready to go. I think the energy and the hype really got my kids going.”
After weathering the early flurry, Strafford responded.
Keyed by a trio of aces from junior Taylor Dormann, the Lady Indians rallied. Strafford cut the deficit to 13-12; however, the visitors would not get closer.
A pair of kills from Findley and junior Bailee Morgan closed out the first set for the Lady Eagles at 25-20.
Strafford head coach Ashley Bough lamented her team’s slow start in the rivalry’s supercharged environment.
“If we don’t start out getting those first few and that momentum, we’re digging ourselves a hole and constantly fighting back,” Bough said, “It happens every year, no matter what. We come in and the atmosphere and the rivalry kind of gets you from the beginning. They’re so excited to play but, sometimes, they play outside their comfort zone and their confidence area.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE MATCH
In the second set, it was Strafford’s turn to jump out early.
Propelled by a strong service game from senior Kaitlyn Messina, the Lady Indians raced to a 4-0 lead.
Fair Grove wasted little time responding.
After the Lady Eagles tied up the score at 8-8 on senior Sidney Hill’s kill, both teams battled back and forth throughout the rest of a set that featured 11 ties.
Junior Micah Chadwell was particularly effective for Strafford, tallying eight kills before classmate Sue Wiertzema’s final kill sealed the second set for the Lady Indians at 26-24.
Dormann also shined for the Lady Indians, this time on the defensive end.
After dropping the first set, the middle hitter responded at the net to help key Strafford’s equalizer. Dormann finished with five blocks on the evening.
“Defense wins games,” Bough said. “You’ve got to be able to dig balls, pick up balls, block some balls and you’ve got to be scrappy, especially when you play against somebody like Alana Findley. I felt like that’s what we did in the second game. We started making them have to rethink.”
While Strafford’s defense was solid in the second set, things unraveled in the third.
Once again, Fair Grove raced out to an early lead — this time with an 11-3 run — and forced Strafford back on its heels with an impressive display of defense.
“Alana and Sidney are our go-tos,” Peck said. “But our other kids did the little things right, and that’s what causes us to win ball games. They don’t get the attention because they don’t get the stats, but they cover our hitters, they close a block, they play off-blocker defense and do the little stuff that cause us to be good.”
Senior Shannon Collins led the charge for the Lady Eagles with 13 digs on the evening.
When asked what keyed her defensive success, the libero was quick to respond.
“Reading the hitters,” Collins said. “I have to read where they’re going and stay on my toes the entire time. I see where their shoulders are facing. If they’re up going straight, that means they’re tipping, and if they’re bent … that means they’re swinging.”
Peck praised her team’s ability to quickly react to balls at the net.
“We’ve been working since the summer with our eye-sequencing and blocking on the net,” Peck said. “My kids have really learned to stop watching the ball and pay attention to the hitters, so they set a block very well. We’re able to get those digs that might be kills if they fall in the middle of our floor.”
Each time Strafford attempted to rally in the third, Fair Grove had an answer.
Time and time again, that answer was the same.
Alana Findley.
The all-state middle hitter notched eight kills in the third set, including back-to-back bombs to close out the match at 25-15.
Findley finished with 17 kills to lead the Lady Eagles attack and combined with Hill for four blocks.
“They key for my success was watching where they were,” Findley said, “I can hit the ball, but if there’s a block, there’s no good in hitting it right into the block. My key was to find holes in the floor, to see where they were and hit it where they weren’t.”
Patient and effective on the evening, Findley’s play drew high praise from her coach.
“[Findley] has worked for four years to become the player she is,” Peck said. “It’s amazing to watch her, to coach her and to play with her. She’s an amazing team player and our kids love to play with her. What hurts me is the fact she’s going to be done in about four weeks.”
Following the match, Peck reflected on the school’s storied rivalry with its neighbor to the south.
“It’s been a while,” Peck said, “Strafford has been on a hot run for the past three or four years. This group of kids has not had the success against a Strafford team. They’re getting it, and I just think we’re going to continue to build off that.”
Senior Ryah Icehower and junior Maranntha Hollman led Fair Grove with 17 and 16 assists, respectively.
“I don’t like losing, but we’re going to use this loss as a team, and it’s going to be motivation for us,” Bough said. “Every time we step on the court in practice, we’re going to get better. Every single game we have the rest of the season, we’re going to get better, to when we do see them again — and in my heart I believe we’re going to — we’re going to give them another battle.”
Chadwell led Strafford with 14 kills, while seniors Allison Nichols and Messina each finished with six digs. Messina also led the team with 16 assists.
Up next for Fair Grove (19-2-2) is a trip to Saturday’s Willard Invitational Tournament, while Strafford (14-3-1) hosts Conway on Monday, Oct. 8.
Varsity final: Fair Grove – 2, Strafford – 1 (25-20, 24-26, 25-15)
JV final: Strafford – 2, Fair Grove – 1 (18-25, 25-15, 25-20)
Frosh final: Fair Grove – 1, Strafford – 1 (26-24, 20-25)
