By David Rogers. NEWTON, N.C. — For an early season non-conference test, a four-set thriller was just what Foard head coach Meredith Lombardi and Watauga head coach Kim Pryor wanted, whoever won. Mission accomplished on Aug. 31 with the Pioneers pulling off the win, 3-1 (28-26, 20-25, 25-18. 25-17).
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Given the intensity of the first two sets, which the two longtime friendly adversaries split, many in the well-populated grandstands thought that surely the match would go the distance, to five sets. The long, extended rallies throughout the evening featured powerful kill shots, stunning digs and dramatic saves to keep the ball in play only underlining the skillful, evenly-matched play of the rivalry.
The first set did not start out so promising for the visiting Pioneers, who dug themselves a proverbial hole at the start, with a six-point deficit. Pryor noted afterwards, “Resilience has been a mainstay of this team from the beginning.”
The Pioneers used that resilience to take the lead at 8-7 but could never quite gain separation from the Tigers. The lead changed hands several times, even though one or the other side jumped out to three- and four-point advantages. When Foard tied Watauga at 24-24, everyone in the building knew that first set was going to overtime — the Pioneers eventually prevailing, 28-26.
Curiously, after Watauga had so valiantly rallied and persevered to win the first set, the Pioneers stumbled in the second set — and the Tigers got their well-polished “mojo” back, even featuring some forceful kill shots by senior outside hitter Taylor Ramseur. Although Watauga rallied back to close the deficit late in the set, Foard seemed very much in control throughout and won, 25-20.
The third and fourth sets saw Foard beginning to tire and the Pioneers relentless in keeping up the pressure. Even so, some of the best and longest rallies of the evening were to be had, the scrappy Tigers refusing to go quietly into the night without a fight.
Foard’s head mentor, Lombardi spoke to the history of this rivalry after the final whistle had blown.
“I always look forward to these teams playing each other. Foard vs. Watauga is always going to be a solid match,” said Lombardi. “It is a great competition for us to get ready for our conference play and, hopefully, in the state playoffs. Watauga is always ready. Tonight, we expected Watauga to be big and they were. They were quick and they were big.
“Watauga’s defense is very hard to score on,” Lombardi added. “Their libero (Evie Robbins)… was all over the floor to keep the ball in play. And their setters did a great job of setting up their hitters.”
Not surprisingly, Watauga’s Pryor had post-game comments that mirrored her Foard counterpart’s.
“Foard is always really, really scrappy and is really good on defense. No matter what we brought, we knew we would have to be ready because they would have an equal amount of digs and great plays on that side of the net,” said Pryor. “We started slow, but over and over again this team has been resilient. No matter what, they know they are in this game.”
It was senior designator setter Madi Combs’ birthday on Aug. 31, so this win was particularly special for her.
“Coming in, we knew Foard was a really scrappy team and that we would have to be just as scrappy to keep the ball from hitting the floor,” said Combs just before revealing that she had special motivation because it was her birthday. “I knew I had to set our outside hitters because they are really strong. In particular, our senior, Brooklyn Stanbery is really smart with the ball and hits around many of the blocks.”
Stanbery noted that her team’s energy was a difference maker in jumpstarting their early comeback rally.
“The thing about our team is our energy goes a long way,” said Stanbery. “What I mean by that is if we are not talking or hearing, then we just won’t play good. We have to cheer each other on, support each other. I know that sounds simple, but it makes a difference.”
The Pioneers have two more non-conference games before starting their Northwestern Conference slate on Sept. 13 at home vs. South Caldwell. On Sept. 5, the host Cuthbertson at Lentz Eggers Gym in a rematch after last week’s 3-0 sweep of the Cavaliers in Waxhaw. A day later (Sept. 6), Watauga goes on the road for another early season rematch, at Hickory, whom the Pioneers fought in a 5-set thriller on Aug. 22, before winning, 3-2.
INDIVIDUAL WATAUGA STATS
- Brooklyn Stanbery: 30 kills, 15 digs, 2 stuff blocks, 1 service ace
- Evie Robbins: 27 digs, 2 service aces, 3 assists
- Madi Combs: 31 assists, 10 digs, 2 service aces
- Emma Pastusic: 14 kills, 1 stuff blocks, 4 digs
- Lainey Gragg: 16 assists, 1 service ace, 13 digs
- Sara Marlowe: 4 kills, 1 stuff block, 1 dig
- Olivia Kop: 13 digs, 1 service ace
- Kora Knight: 3 kills, 4 stuff blocks, 1 dig
- Kasey Gragg: 2 kills, 6 digs
- Kate McCullough: 2 stuff blocks
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