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William Monroe volleyball shakes off slow starts to sweep Skyline

In the first game, William Monroe trailed 9-3. In the second game, they trailed 5-0. In the third, they faced a 25-24 set point deficit. 

 

The Dragons won all three of those games. 

 

Monroe overcame slow starts in each of the three sets and went on to defeat Skyline 3-0 Tuesday night. 

 

It seemed early on in the first set that Monroe might dig themselves a substantial hole as the Dragons called a timeout after Skyline went on a 4-0 run to take a 9-3 lead. Monroe settled in after the timeout and responded with nine consecutive points to take a 12-9 lead. 

 

“We definitely had to get our mindset right,” said Monroe junior Mara Woolford. “We made a few adjustments based on where they were hitting.” 

 

Skyline called a timeout of their own to try to disrupt Monroe’s momentum. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Monroe continued their impressive stretch which ended up being a 17-4 run, punctuated by an ace by junior Savannah Meade. 

 

“We were able to knock the dust off a little bit,” said Monroe head coach Leah Wimmer. “Just kind of get the nerves out. They got more confident with their serves. Serves were looking really good.”

 

Skyline got a few points back but were not able to mount a comeback, as Monroe took the first set, 25-17. 

 

The second set began similarly to the first, with the Hawks jumping out to a 5-0 lead and looking to take control. Once again, however, the Dragons answered the call and got themselves back in the set. 

 

A pivotal moment in the match came midway through the second set, with Skyline holding a 13-12 lead. Mara Woolford scored on an impressive kill and then proceeded to record five consecutive aces for Monroe. 

 

“I was looking at where they were set up and hitting my spots,” said Woolford. 

 

Woolford finished with nine kills and six aces. 

 

“It was crucial,” Wimmer said of Woolford’s personal 6-0 run in the second set. 

 

After the teams traded a few points, Ella Weaver scored five straight points on kills for Monroe to take the second set, 25-17. Weaver finished with 9 kills and 2 aces. Junior setter Alex Sharff recorded 15 assists. 

 

The third set was closely contested until Monroe looked to put the match away as they went up 23-16. Despite facing seemingly insurmountable odds, Skyline responded with an 8-0 run to tie the game at 23 and then had a set point opportunity a few points later. 

 

“Skyline is real scrappy, so we have to stay on our toes,” said Wimmer. “We had to adjust our defense a little bit. We adjusted our defense on certain hitters.”

 

Monroe defended the set point to save the match from going to a fourth set and then won the next two points to clinch the set, 27-25, and the match victory. 

 

“That’s one thing I love about them,” Wimmer said of her team’s response to Skyline’s comeback. “They’re resilient. They’re gritty.” 

 

The Dragons will host Central Woodstock on Thursday night at 7 p.m.

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