Lady Trojans come up short in BRD semifinal

New Kent’s Lady Trojans kept it close, but could never quite get over the hump in their bid to upset Jamestown’s host Eagles in the teams’ Bay Rivers District volleyball tournament semifinal.

Jamestown, the second seed, managed a 25-19, 25-22, 25-16 win in the Nov. 4 clash to advance to the title game. For third-seeded New Kent, the outcome marked the third time this season the Lady Trojans (16-6) have fallen to the Eagles. But despite the setback, New Kent has already qualified for the Region I tourney (taking on Battlefield District top seed Chancellor on Nov. 9).

“I felt Jamestown played the best I’ve seen them play all season,” said Lady Trojan coach Cyndi Burnett. “Their offense, their passing, and their sets were really on.

“Their defense in the middle was intimidating to us,” she said. “We just couldn’t get the ball around them tonight.

“The last time we played them, our outsides struggled and our middles were good, so who knows,” she said. “They just outplayed us, and it wasn’t to be.”

New Kent’s struggle to forge in front surfaced in game one. After the Eagles’ Briana Sutton punched over a shot to break a 5-5 deadlock, the Lady Trojans could not overtake the hosts the rest of the way. A pair of Eagle miscues enabled New Kent to close a four-point gap to two at 19-17, but a Sutton kill triggered a 3-0 run to put the game out of reach.

New Kent had its best opportunity to wrest control in game two. Behind Karley Allen’s serve, the visitors vaulted in front 9-6. Then spikes by Meagan Clark built five-point advantages on two occasions, first at 12-7 and again at 13-8. But Celine Rhodes’ serve produced a 5-0 run to put Jamestown back in front.

Ashley Pierce’s kill ended the Eagle surge, and another Pierce kill moments later put New Kent back on top 17-16. Then when Jamestown’s Kelly Esch could not get to Monique St. Cyr’s set, the New Kent lead became 20-18.

But an Esch block and a pair of New Kent errors handed the lead back to the Eagles. Amanda Branch’s kill off an assist from Lena Ciaravino created a 21-21 tie, but Jamestown pulled away from there.

New Kent never led in game three. The Eagles built a 14-11 advantage before using a 4-0 run to create a comfortable cushion and cruise to the win.

In the Nov. 1 quarterfinals, New Kent easily dispatched sixth-seeded York 25-17, 25-7, 25-8.