Sparkling display
Waynesburg continues stellar play with first-round sweep of Quaker Valley
WAYNESBURG 鈥� Waynesburg Central fell behind 5-0 in the first set of its girls volleyball match against Quaker Valley.
Raiders coach Dan Higinbotham wasn鈥檛 concerned.
鈥淛itters,鈥� said Higinbotham who opted not to use a timeout. 鈥淚 knew it was. I tried to let them play through that. I had confidence in them.鈥�
Waynesburg quickly regrouped, got on track and put on full display why it was undefeated during the regular season and given the second seed in the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs.
The host Raiders worked like a machine in disposing of the Lady Quakers in a three-game sweep, winning by scores of 25-19, 25-10 and 25-18 in front of their raucous fans Tuesday night.
Waynesburg, the Section 3 champion which upped its record to 19-0, advances to Thursday night鈥檚 quarterfinals where it will host 10th-seeded Neshannock, which knocked off No. 7 South Park, 3-1. The match is slated for 7 p.m.
The Lady Lancers (11-4) finished in a three-way tie for first place in Section 4 with Riverside and Mohawk.
The Raiders turned in a stellar outing in all phases with contributions from seemingly everyone.
鈥淚t was an all-around performance,鈥� Higinbotham said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 just one hitter, it was four or five hitters. It was just coming from all angles. We were on the attack the whole night.
鈥淚t was a pretty well-rounded effort.鈥�
Ani Cree contributed 12 kills and six digs and Railey Bochna also had 12 kills with five digs for Waynesburg, which also got eight kills and four digs from Emily Rafferty and six kills and two aces from Harper Grimes.
Chatham Knight rang up 20 assists, Gina Tedrow totaled 13 assists and a pair of aces and Lelia McCollum added eight digs and two assists for the Raiders.
It was Waynesburg鈥檚 second win this season over Quaker Valley (8-11) which beat Keystone Oaks, 3-2, in the preliminary round. The Raiders also swept the Lady Quakers in an early-season, non-section match.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e a good team, a well-coached team,鈥� Higinbotham said of Quaker Valley. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think they played their best tonight but I credit my girls with a lot of that.鈥�
Higinbotham admitted he was a bit concerned to see how his team would respond once the postseason began after such a spectacular regular season.
鈥淚 always worry about how the girls are going to react,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut I was pretty sure as soon as they got things rolling they鈥檇 be fine, and they were.鈥�
After falling behind 5-0 in the first set, the Raiders went on a 12-5 run to go up by two and never trailed again. The Lady Quakers were still within two at 21-19 late in the set before Waynesburg finished them off with a four-point run that included a kill by Bochna and back-to-back kills by Rafferty to end it.
鈥淚 would give a lot of credit to Emily Rafferty,鈥� Higinbotham said. 鈥淓veryone played well but she stood out. She was really good tonight.鈥�
Quaker Valley scored the first point of the second set but soon found itself down 11-3 as the Raiders dominated play and cruised.
Cree made the play of the match when the score was 20-9 by diving and somehow saving a ball down low at the net at an almost impossible angle to set up Emma Blair for a kill.
Bochna鈥檚 kill finished off the set.
Waynesburg scored the first five points of the third set, pushed out to a 10-3 advantage and built the lead up to eight at 17-9. The Lady Quakers kept battling but could never get closer than five the rest of the way. Cree had six kills in the final set.
Higinbotham was pleased to see his team thrive on its home court.
鈥淚t was just a normal home game for us,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e were relaxed. We did our normal routine. We came to play volleyball and did what we鈥檝e done all year.鈥�
Higinbotham gave credit to Waynesburg鈥檚 rollicking student section which made its presence felt most of the night.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 phenomenal,鈥� said Higinbotham, whose players posed with the group for photos after the match. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like having a seventh player on the floor. That brings so much energy to my kids. They love it. It was really cool.鈥�