New Kent Charles City Chronicle

News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | March 28, 2024

Lady Trojans get crucial win over Warhill on Senior Night

By Robb Johnson | October 27, 2017 12:11 am

New Kent’s Raven Harris (10) finesses the ball over Warhill defenders with a gentle tap.

Robb Johnson photo

There’s a mystique that surrounds New Kent’s Lady Trojans volleyball team when Warhill’s Lady Lions visit on Senior Night. It was no different during the Oct. 26 season finale.

For the second consecutive time, New Kent upended Warhill 25-17, 20-25,25-23, 25-19 to take down the volleyball powerhouse. New Kent defeated Warhill on Senior Night in 2015, the same year the Lady Lions won the state championship.

After falling to Warhill in straight sets earlier in the season, New Kent used smarts out the game. That methodology propelled the hosts in the first frame, closing it out on a 5-1 run to win it 25-17.

But momentum swung in the second set in favor of the guests. Warhill utilized their length and size to claim the second set. In the third frame, Warhill held a 20-17 advantage before Lady Trojan head coach elected to substitute Raven Harris into the game. The ploy worked as Harris blocked a Warhill spike attempt and returned the favor with a kill of her own to prompt a 6-0 New Kent run (23-21). Warhill surged to tie the game at 23 apiece, but two errors by Lady Lion Merideth Estlack provided a one-set advantage for the hosts.

New Kent continued to ride the positive flow, preventing Warhill’s attempts to make the final frame competitive. The Lady Trojans capped off Senior Night by claiming the final set 25-19.

After the contest, New Kent head coach Cynthia Burnett summed up the victory and its importance heading into postseason play.

“This victory was critical for us tonight and we stood up and showed our fight,” the victorious head coach commented. “We have continued to improve in all areas of our game this year.

“This game was a big time confidence booster heading into postseason play,” Burnett concluded.

New Kent is expected to host a regional contest on Nov. 1 with an opponent yet to be named.