New Kent capitalizes on Lafayette mistakes, wins home opener

New Kent’s Lindsey Johnson (left) revs up to deliver a spike over a Lafayette defender.

Robb Johnson photo

In a battle of two young teams, it was evident that errors and mistakes would factor into the outcome. For New Kent’s Lady Trojans, it turned out to be on the winning side.

Capitalizing off mistakes by the visiting Lafayette Lady Rams, New Kent defeated their Bay Rivers District Rival 25-15, 18-25, 26-24, and 25-19 in the Sept. 12 clash.

The first set started horrendously for the hosts, as they were not able to return many of Lafayette’s shots due to mistimed errors. The Lady Rams raced out 8-1 before New Kent’s turnaround began. The result was a 23-3 run that was sparked by nine points courtesy of Lindsey Johnson.

After Lafayette recovered to take set two, the visitors used that momentum as Emily Sullivan and her 6’1” frame delivered serves and hard hits to double up on the hosts (14-7). But New Kent had consistency in their methodology, rallying to tie the game at 24 apiece with a Haley Baker tip. A missed kill by Sullivan handed New Kent the advantage point before Lady Trojan Haley Hyndshaw’s spike gave set three to the hosts.

With the teams tied at seven in the fourth set, the hosts began to creep away from Lafayette due to errors. New Kent saw Hyndshaw’s score along with one last miscue by the visitors end the contest with the hosts on top.

After the contest, Lady Trojans head coach Cynthia Burnett talked about her team’s composure in their home opener.

“We knew we could play better, and we needed to get the nerves out and settle down,” the victorious head coach said. “We needed to play New Kent ball.

“They started to believe in the teammates,” Burnett continued. “Talking and communicating more includes being louder on the floor and the bench, and that is what turned it around for us to win.”

New Kent improves to 2-1.