Lady Trojans take down York in Region 3A volleyball quarterfinals

By Robb Johnson | November 6, 2025 2:29 am

New Kent’s Reagan Hailey-Robinson (13) delivers a kill despite a block attempt by York’s Sophia Tschida.

Robb Johnson photo

Coming in at the top seed in Region 3A, New Kent’s Lady Trojans’ volleyball team understand that they are the target each night when opponents attempt to knock them out of the playoffs.

The Lady Trojans survived their quarterfinal test against Bay Rivers District rival in the York Lady Falcons 25-11, 25-12, 25-20 in the Nov. 5 contest, advancing to the next round against the Lakeland Lady Cavaliers.

New Kent started out in impressive fashion in the opening set, coasting to an easy win. In the second stanza, the Lady Trojans seemed to be in control after Ava Nieto’s kill provided a four point lead (10-6). New Kent watched their lead grow to 16-10 after Leah Rounds’ ace. From there, Carly Sachs and Desirae Stowe powered the Lady Trojans with some key plays, leading to a 9-2 run to close out the set with a win.

In the third frame, the Lady Falcons managed to stay competitive early on, trailing by two (9-7) before a dig by New Kent’s Brooklyn Wiles cut their momentum off. New Kent’s lead grew to six (14-8), resulting in York calling a timeout. Despite an attempt to thwart momentum, York could not orchestrate a run as the hosts received additional contributions from their substitutes to close out the match and complete the sweep.

After the contest, New Kent Lady Trojans Head Coach Stuart Burnett kept things in perspective when reflecting on the game and the future contests.

“We played them (York) well the last time we played them, and they have improved throughout the season,” Burnett said, giving credit to York. “We have to continue to practice and get prepared for next week.

“We have challenges ahead and we have to clean some things up,” the coach continued. “There are points that you cannot give up. However, the good thing is we have our seniors who are all back healthy and we have them on the court, and that brings good stability.”

Rounds led the team with 12 kills, while Carina Dolci led the team with 11 digs and five aces.