PREP VOLLEYBALL: Catholic wins key match over Trinity
Catholic’s Maria Schwarz sets Julienne Pharrams for a spike in the match with Trinity on Thursday. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
Catholic’s volleyball team had a season-defining week, playing at Prattville Christian on Tuesday and then traveling to Trinity on Thursday. After beating two of the best teams in the state, Catholic coach Sellers Dubberley learned a little bit about his team this week.
“I learned that we can win tough games,” he said. “Going into both of these gyms, we didn’t necessarily play our best volleyball against two of the best teams in the state, but they found a way to win. The schedule that I set up in the spring and the summer, all the games that we played leading up to this week, paid off this week. It came up big in those important moments.”
Catholic took control of each set on Thursday and played ahead for most of the night, winning 25-19 and 25-20 before Trinity battled back to win the third set, 25-22. The Knights saved their best for last, jumping out to an early six-point lead and defeating the Wildcats in the fourth and decisive set, 25-15.
It was similar to the way the Knights played on Tuesday, when they needed every point to win the first two sets at Prattville Christian, then shifted gears and played their best volleyball in the third set.
“This past weekend, we were in Auburn playing a tough team from Georgia, Brookstone, which beat us the first time in pool play,” Dubberley said. “We played them in the knockout round and they beat us in the first set, but we adjusted and adapted and won the next two. That’s something these girls have shown.
“Any team can get up on you early, especially when you’re playing teams like Trinity and PCA, as talented and well coached as they are. It’s the adjustments that you make throughout the sets and then later on in the game as the sets get longer and longer.”
Trinity, which played Catholic tight throughout the first three sets, finally caught the Knights in the third set and briefly took the lead, then fell behind again. The difference between the third set and the others is that it was Catholic which briefly lost its poise and Trinity which took the momentum and turned it into a win by scoring five of the game’s final six points.
Mary Alice Sasser went on a serving run in the third set that was crucial in the Wildcat rally. Addison Cherry had 35 assists in the four sets, 12 of which went to Reese Patterson.
That ability to withstand Catholic’s best shot and deliver was missing most of the evening as the Wildcats would battle within a point on numerous occasions, only to fall back with self-inflicted errors.
“Catholic is an extremely talented team,” said Trinity coach Sarah Dubberley. “I know that every time we go out there, it’s going to be a battle. We didn’t get the outcome that we wanted but we’ll see them again. And then we’ll see them again (in the area tournament) after that. I just hope we learn from it and grow from it.
“I told (the players) it’s tough to win a game against a good team making these kinds of errors. You might get away with it against mediocre teams but we’re not going to get the job done playing like we are now.”
For the Knights, Lennon McAnnally had 14 kills, eight digs, 21 passes and three aces, Allyse Rudolph had 10 kills, nine digs, 21 passes and a block, Julienne Pharrams had 10 kills, seven digs, three blocks and an ace, Harper Howell had five kills and six blocks, Mally Barranco had 14 digs, 21 passes and a kill, Audrey Trant had 20 assists, eight digs and a kill, Maria Schwarz had 16 assists, two digs, a block and three kills, Sophia Taylor had six digs, nine passes and three aces and Kathryn Reardon had two kills, a block and three passes.
Catholic (27-5) improved to 2-0 in 3A Area 6 play, while Trinity (18-4) dropped to 0-2 in area play, a game behind Prattville Christian at 1-1. Catholic still has regular-season meetings remaining against both teams but they will be in the Catholic gym.
“In our area, there have been three games and the road team has won all three,” Sellers Dubberley said. “There hasn’t been a home win yet in our area. Now I will say it helped tonight that all the students came over and supported us and that’s probably something in the past we wouldn’t have had. But I’m not taking any comfort in the fact we’re playing these teams at home. I’d rather not play them at all.”
Trinity travels to Guntersville on Saturday before returning home to host Montgomery Academy on Tuesday, while Catholic travels to Alabama Christian on Tuesday.