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PLAS blasts Fort Dale

Staff

Published Thursday, September 25, 2008

Photo by Matt Nascone

Pike Liberal Arts School junior Josie Griffin, 9, puts down a spike Thursday against Fort Dale. Griffin led PIke with 11 kills and six service aces.

The Lady Patriots of Pike Liberal Arts School pulled out the brooms Thursday night, as they swept a doubleheader from Fort Dale.

Pike (8-5, 5-3 AISA Class AA, Region 1) came out strong and never let up, winning 3-0 (25-22, 25-8, 25-15) and 3-0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-17). The Lady Patriots hitters were on target Thursday, compiling 38 kills in the two matches.

Junior Josie Griffin led the way at the net, putting down 11 kills. She also added six service aces and had 12 points on her serve.

“I was aiming at my friends McCall and Murphy on the other side,” Griffin said. “But seriously, I was just thinking about crushing the ball when it was set to me. And it felt good because I have not been doing good in practice, but I just hit it as hard as possible.”

Senior Allison Linton was right on Griffin’s heels for the kill lead on the day, compiling 10 with seven in the first match. She also added 28 service points and five aces.

“I just wanted to win and we looked great out there as a team,” Linton said. “It was exciting to see the football team and a lot of other fans here today. I think we had a great attitude out there and we played like a team.”

Sophomore Madison Sanders almost cracked double digits in kills as well. She posted nine kills and added 11 service points and one ace.

“We have been working during practice on jumping for a hit and I just wanted to jump high and bring it down on the other team every time I went for a hit,” Sanders said.

But the hitters would not have had so many opportunities if they did not have someone setting them up. Junior Genevieve Teel is that setter.

“A lot of the work is done by the bumpers,” Teel said. “They are doing amazing and we have improved so much this year. I love to see the outcome of the spike because I know I had a part in it. Setting is often overlooked, so it just feels good to be recognized.”

PLAS head coach Mendy Avant took the process of a successful spike one step further.

“If there is not a good pass, then there cannot be a good set,” Avant said. “And we had some great passes today.”

Avant said Thursday’s success could be found in what was said at a team meeting following a 3-0 loss to Morgan in Troy Sept. 22. The Lady Patriots opened the season 5-2, but a three-match skid followed.

“There had been a lot of finger pointing going on out there and we worked in practice on getting better as a team and working as a team,” Avant said. “They all agreed to play as a team no matter what.”

PLAS is now on a three-match winning streak and Avant credits the hustling efforts of every player on the team. She said the hitters and setters played well on the front row and the back row hustled to get the digs.

Junior Katie Wiggins had seven kills, 11 service points, one ace and two blocks in the match. Teel had 23 service points and five aces. Junior Sara Richburg contributed seven service points and four aces.

Pike hits the road for a match against region foe Macon-East Sept. 30 before hosting Lee-Scott in Troy Oct. 1.

First serve for the JV match on both dates is set for 3:30 p.m.

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