By Liz Keller / Scrimmageplaycva.com contributor
PALMYRA — William Monroe seems to be peaking at just the right time.
With four regular-season games remaining, the Greene Dragons are playing some of their best volleyball of the season. That trend continued Tuesday night as William Monroe dispatched Fluvanna County 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-21) to earn its third straight win.
“It was a huge win for us, it’s hard to beat the Flucos — especially at their place,” William Monroe coach Dee Hoffman said. “They’re a well-coached team, so I’m very pleased with my girls. I was very impressed with the way they played as a team. They were looking like they were having a good time out there, and that was the first time in a while.”
The visitors got timely scoring spurts in each set en route to the Jefferson District victory.
The first set was tied at 7-7 before William Monroe went on a 7-1 run to take control. The Flucos pulled within three (21-18) on a kill from Hannah Miller, but mistakes prevented them from getting any closer as the Dragons prevailed 25-20.
Although Fluvanna broke to a 7-3 lead in the second game behind strong net play from Miller, William Monroe tied it and used a 13-3 scoring surge to gain the momentum. Three straight blocks from Alexa Smith were critical to the Dragons’ run. Smith added 10 service points in the win.
Fluvanna battled back again, cutting the deficit to one (24-23) but miscues proved costly for the Flucos.
“It’s the game of volleyball — keep [the ball] on their side of the court,” said Hoffman, whose team improved to 7-3 in district play and 11-7 overall. “Whenever they were out of sync, I was letting them know ‘take advantage of this.'”
The teams kept it close throughout the third set, with seven ties and three lead changes. Leading 13-12, the Dragons got a pair of aces from Katelyn Roach and a nifty play at the net from Alex Cave to take a 17-13 advantage. Cave, who went down with an apparent ankle injury late in the second set, returned in the third to finish with 10 kills and four service points.
The Flucos (10-9, 6-4 JD) answered behind solid play up front from Miller, Taylor Beck and Terry Crickenberger to trim the lead to 23-21, but were unable to get any closer.
“William Monroe came ready to play — they always do. They played smart, they had a strong net game and we seemed to be stuck in mud,” Fluvanna coach Christi Harlowe said. “Our youth showed tonight. We stopped being aware of the court — those are youthful, mental mistakes. And William Monroe played clean volleyball.”
Miller registered a game-high 15 kills to go along with three blocks and a pair of aces. Beck added eight kills and a block and Crickenberger finished with five kills. Sammi Toy dished out 27 assists.
William Monroe travels to Orange County on Thursday, while Fluvanna visits Goochland.
