Middlesex takes charge, tops Charles City in home finale

Charles City's Jaelah Wyatt (left) proves to be vital backup as teammate Kourtney Wyatt (right) is unable to catch up with the speed of the ball.

Andre' Jones photo

Charles City Lady Panthers volleyball team has shown improvement during their season of resurrection. But the inability to return serves played a pivotal role as the hosts fell in straight sets 25-13, 25-7, 25-16 to the visiting Middlesex Lady Chargers during the Oct. 22 home finale.

Both teams exchanged scores in the early going of the opening set before the visitors took control to claim the first frame. The second stanza wasn’t any easier for the hosts, as Middlesex jumped out 14-1 behind the serving of Carlee Browder. Charles City finally got on track, snapping the streak before rolling off four consecutive points to cut the gap to nine (14-5). However, the visitors closed out the set on a 11-2 run.

Set three ignited the Lady Panthers. Charles City balanced attack on offense thanks to returns by Keanna Motley and Sydney Richard helped deadlock the frame at six apiece. And when Middlesex attempted to pull away with a 4-0 run, Charles City responded with three consecutive points to slice the deficit to a single point (10-9). However, Middlesex would rely on the efforts of Lauren Shores to push the game out the reach. Shores’ line drive serves would be too much for the Lady panthers to return, igniting an 8-0 run to double up the hosts (18-9). Charles City bounced back later on behind Motley, who led the charge of four consecutive points to get the hosts within five (20-15). But the effort would fall just short as the Lady Chargers would close out the game in straight sets.

After the contest, Lady Panther head coach James Raj spoke about the journey through the year for his team.

“When we first started, we were panicking and not doing things like taking spikes,” he said. “Tonight, we weren’t hesitant and we were sending the ball back.

“Our first matchup against them we were beaten bad in sets,” he said, pointing out a specific set score of 25-2. “But today, we did well and you can see the improvement.”

Charles City Lady Panthers volleyball team will lose two seniors in Richard, but return eight players.

“I need more students to come out,” Raj added. “I want the younger classes to come out so that they can train and be ready to continue to grow. I am proud of what these girls did this year and hope the ones who return continue to improve and get better.”

Charles City’s record drops to 2-14 with two away games remaining.