STARTING OFF STRONG: Boyle and Pulaski advance to region semis against tough competition

Photo by Jacob Pratt: The Pulaski County Lady Maroons celebrate after their 3-1 victory over Somerset Christian in the first round of the 12th Region Tournament on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024.

NICHOLASVILLE - The 12th Region Volleyball Tournament kicked off on Monday, with the West Jessamine Colts playing host to this year's tournament field of eight teams.

The last time the Boyle County Lady Rebels and the Trinity Christian Titans got together, it was Boyle pulling one out by the slimmest of margins in a 3-2 victory just two weeks ago. On Monday evening, the two kicked off the 12th Region Tournament and after the first set, it looked like the Titans were well on their way to an upset. However, Boyle regained their focus after a close loss in the first set and took the next 3 in a row, advancing to the semifinals with a 3-1 win (23-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-18).

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Boyle County sophomore Reece Klosterman (right) attempts to earn a kill past the tip from Trinity Christian freshman Amelia Stanton (left) during the Rebels' 3-1 victory over the Titans on Monday.

The two teams traded points early on in the first set before Kendra Christopher and Maleeah Smith combined to give the Rebels a 9-7 advantage. It was then Amelia Stanton and Mary Katherine Waters who took over to give the Titans a 15-13 lead halfway through. Christopher had three straight kills to give her team the edge late before Stanton had an emphatic spike to give the Titans the first set 25-23.

It was all Charlie Grubbs early on in the second set, as she had an insane run of aces to give the Rebels an 8-3 lead. Stellar play from Stanton and Alexandra Bottom allowed the Titans to go on trim Boyle’s lead to 13-10, forcing a timeout. A run of stellar hitting from Grubbs and Lilly Turner put momentum firmly in the corner of the Rebels though, and it wasn’t long before a service error from the Titans handed Boyle a 25-20 second set win.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Trinity Christian junior Claire Connor (2) attempts to save the ball during the Titans' loss to Boyle County on Monday evening.

The third set started out back-and-forth again before Grubbs once again pushed her team ahead. Stanton brought the Titans within 14-10 but it was a bit of the same old script as the Rebels took control again. An ace from Elizabeth Battaile while the Rebels were on game-point gave Trinity a bit of hope, but Smith quickly wiped away that hope with a set-clinching block to give Boyle a 25-17 third set victory.

The fourth set started out much even between the two opponents, with Boyle taking a 10-7 lead early on following an attack error despite some rather magnificent saves from Stanton and Claire Connor. Christopher had four straight kills midway through the set, including one on a ferocious spike of the ball. Trinity tried their hardest to mount a comeback, but the Rebels just wouldn’t bend, with a kill from Christopher putting them on match point. A kill from Turner later, and Boyle had sealed the fate of the Titans with a 25-18 set win, clinching a 3-1 victory in the match to advance in the regional tournament.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Boyle County senior Kendra Christopher (5) rises up in an attempt to spike the ball during the game between the Lady Rebels and the Trinity Christian Titans on Monday.

Boyle County improves to 29-9 and they will play in Wednesday’s first semifinal match.

Trinity Christian finishes their season with a record of 19-11. Best of luck to seniors Alexandra Bottom, Faith Valentine and Mary Katherine Waters in all of their future endeavors.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Pulaski County senior Ava King (right) attempts to kill the ball past the block of Somerset Christian junior Emma Grace Warren (left) during the Maroons' victory over the Cougars on Monday.

Game two of the night was an all Somerset affair as the Pulaski County Lady Maroons took on last year's regional runners-up the Somerset Christian Lady Cougars. This was another close battle between the two rivals, with both teams diving for balls all over the court. At the end of the game, however, it was the Maroons that had just too much experience on the Cougars as they prevailed 3-1 (26-24, 26-24, 21-25, 25-22). Head coach McKenzie McCollum noted after the game that her seniors really believe they can make a run to the regional title game this season.

"We have a lot of seniors and they all have that goal in mind that they want that championship. That's been our goal and our mindset and I think they are just doing a really good job at it so far," she explained.

It was a heavy dose of Sara Tucker and Sophia Barnett early on in the first set, as they both earned numerous kills to get the Cougars out to a 9-5 lead. Following three straight kills from Tucker and an ace from Caroline Mounce, the Cougars were ahead 13-9 and forced a timeout from Pulaski. Ava King immediately righted the ship, earning two straight kills and block to bring the Maroons within two points.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset Christian freshman Selah Scicchitano (7) talks to her teammates during the Cougars' contest against Pulaski County on Monday in Nicholasville.

Pulaski found themselves down 19-13 late in the set and made a miraculous comeback, going on an 8-0 run to take a 21-19 lead. An attacking error put the Maroons on set point before Tucker earned another kill to knot things up at 24-24, meaning the first team to go ahead two would claim the set. After a kill from Ella Lancaster, an attacking error by the Cougars handed the first set 26-24, but if the first was any indication, fans in attendance were in for a great contest.

Tucker again opened the second set with three kills on the first four volleys. Back-to-back aces from Kyndal Putteet tied the set up at 5-5. Neither team could get much of an advantage until the Maroons led 15-12 midway through after a few kills from Becca DeBord, forcing Somerset Christian head coach LaDawna Tucker to call for a break.

Lancaster earned kill after kill, giving her team an 18-15 lead. Again the Cougars were down late in the set and again they battled right back, with an ace from Callie Davis tying things up at 23-23. A kill from Barnett tied things at 24-24, with the teams in the same position as the first set yet again. The final score ended up being 26-24 again as well, as after a vicious spike from Lancaster, King converted the set-winning kill to put the Maroons up 2-0 in the match.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Pulaski County senior Ella Lancaster (right) spikes the ball in an attempt to get it past Somerset Christian sophomore Catherine Hardy (right) during the Maroons' win over the Cougars.

Barnett held her serve perfectly to start out play in the third set, getting the Cougars out to a 4-1 lead. Neither team could get much of an advantage early on, but some stellar blocking from Lancaster threatened to push her team ahead. A kill from Lancaster seemingly woke up Somerset Christian, as they scored eight of the next nine points to take a 20-14 lead in the set.

Just as it looked like the Cougars were cruising to the set win, here came the Maroons on a 6-1 spree after kills from King and DeBord to make the score 21-20 in favor of the visitors on the scoreboard. However, it was the sophomore sensation Sara Tucker that saved the day late, scoring four kills over the next five volleys to hand the Cougars the third set 25-21.

Tucker continued her dominance with two more kills to begin play in the fourth. Back-to-back kills from Tucker, plus a kill from Selah Scicchitano, allowed the Cougars to open up a bit of space on the scoreboard at 12-10. Soon Somerset Christian would be calling for a timeout though, as a kill from Lancaster put the Maroons up 15-14 midway through the set.

DeBord absolutely went wild in the middle of the set, scoring four straight kills to give her team all the momentum in the world, or at least in the gym that is. The Cougars desperately tried to keep their season alive, with Reagan Childers diving all over the court over the final few volleys, but it was eventually too much senior power on the front line for the Maroons. King scored the three final points for her team to seal the deal on a 25-22 set victory and a 3-1 win in the match.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset Christian sophomore Sara Tucker (left) attempts to hit the ball past a pair of blocks during the game between the Lady Cougars and the Pulaski County Lady Maroons on Monday night.

Pulaski County improves to 25-11 and will next take on Boyle County in the semifinals on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. This is a rematch from just two weeks ago that the Rebels took 3-2. Coach McCollum believes her team will be ready for the task in front of them.

"We saw them two weeks ago and we know we can compete with them, we just have to clear up a few errors here and there and I believe we can make a run," she stated.

Somerset Christian finishes their season with a record of 24-10. With very few upperclassmen, this will be a team to watch in the years to come.

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