A couple of runs were the difference-maker as St. Patrick was able to top Mason County in volleyball for the second time this season, first time doing so since 2015.
It was an 8-0 run in the first set and a 6-0 run in the second set that keyed a Lady Saints 2-0 (25-15, 25-22), victory over the Lady Royals.
“That’s volleyball. Momentum can change at any moment of the game and you never know what’s going to happen,” Lady Saints coach Chuck Hamilton said. “That’s why I really enjoy the game. I was proud of how the girls’ really took over.”
The Lady Saints minimized their errors, committing just eight to the Lady Royals 18 and got solid play from their back line, digging numerous Mason County kill attempts as the result of it. Justina Klee capitalized when the ball was set up for her, leading the contest with seven kills as the Lady Saints improved to 11-8 on the season.
“In the past we haven’t been that good at returning kills or serves, that part of our game has really gotten better,” Hamilton said.
Early on in the first set, the two couldn’t separate from one another, knotted at 7-all after St. Pat’s Jaclyn Stewart recorded one of her four kills on the evening. A 5-0 run by the Lady Saints prompted a Lady Royals timeout, trailing 11-7. They’d get within 12-10 after a St. Pat error, but the Lady Saints created more separation with a 6-0 run fueled by back-to-back kills from Klee, prompting another Mason County timeout. They’d get within 20-14 after a Emily Throughman ace, but no closer from there as the Lady Saints closed on a 5-1 run to take the first set 25-15.
“We talked a lot about just making sure we weren’t just standing up and on our toes. We had some incredible moments where they were on top of everything and it was just those small in-between moments that got us,” Lady Royals assistant coach Kortney Mills said.
Mason County came out determined to take the match to three sets to start the second set with a 10-5 lead highlighted by Lexy Cooper in the service game, racking up back-to-back aces and a run of five straight points to give the Lady Royals the advantage. The Lady Saints used a timeout to regroup, getting within one at 13-12 to tighten things up.
The Lady Royals then extended out to an 18-13 advantage after an ace from Alyssa Cracraft followed by a kill from Emily Huber. But as they did all evening, the Lady Saints responded in a big way, as a 6-0 run gave them the lead back at 19-18.
“Our girls’ were resilient. Sometimes when you’re down that late in a match it’s harder to come back from. We got five in a row right there and then it was anybody’s game then,” Hamilton said.
The two would go back and forth from there, trading leads and tying things back up at 22-all. St. Patrick closed the door from there as an error followed by back-to-back aces from Caroline McKay closed out the match at 25-22 for the Lady Saints. The win is their third straight and sixth in the last eight games.
“We’ve grown up a lot in the last couple weeks. I’m really proud of them. We’re 11-8, but when I look at it, we could easily be 16-3. That’s how volleyball is. There’s such a fine line and we let several slip away,” Hamilton said.
They’ll look to stay hot when they host Nicholas County on Thursday at 7 p.m.
The Lady Royals are trending in a different direction. The loss is their eighth straight, dropping to 3-20 on the season.
“We’ve just got to stay positive and keep a positive attitude. We need to keep improving and working on things to make each and every game so we know where we need to improve,” Mills said.
They’ll try to regroup on Wednesday in Mount Olivet when they travel to take on Robertson County at 7 p.m.
LADY SAINTS DEF. LADY ROYALS, 2-0 (25-15, 25-22)
Match Stats
Aces: St. Pat 9 (Stewart 4), Mason 8 (Cooper 4)
Kills: St. Pat 15 (Klee 7), Mason 14 (E. Huber 5)
Service Errors: St. Pat 5, Mason 8
Errors: St. Pat 8, Mason 18
Records: St. Patrick 11-8, Mason County 3-20
