Senior Lauryn Waddell serves an ace for Harnett Central on Tuesday.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Harnett Central’s varsity volleyball team celebrated its Senior Night by rallying to win a five-set Tri-County Six 3-A Conference battle against visiting Southern Lee on Tuesday. Individual set scores were 25-19, 23-25, 18-25, 25-22 and 15-8.
“It means so much,” said Harnett Central senior Lauryn Waddell. “We fought really hard the last set and it just means a lot, being our Senior Night.”
“We didn’t start off the season as best we could,” said Harnett Central senior Madeline Langdon. “So really coming out, especially on Senior Night, and getting such a good win and having the crowd it in just makes it even better.”
Harnett Central coach Jason Harrell was proud of the way his team started the final week of the regular season.
“This is a big week for us,” coach Harrell said. “Southern Lee and Triton. So, we really wanted to focus and really finish strong. I thought we played great tonight. I was really proud of our effort level. It’s Senior Night. We had a lot of emotions going and a lot of fans here. We did what we had to do. We took care of business and we played hard. I was really proud of them.”
Junior Syniah McMiller was a powerhouse at the net for the Trojans (7-12, 4-5 TCSC), tallying 20 kills and six blocks, both match-high totals.
“She’s hit the ball well and she had a lot of blocks tonight,” coach Harrell said. “She had a great game for us. When we get her involved, we’re a different team.”
“Our crowd really hyped us up,” McMiller said. “And I was really upset that we were down when we shouldn’t have been. That just pushed me. I was just trying to get a good hit in.”
Sophomore Ivanna Jones, with eight kills and one block, and junior Harper Howell, with seven kills and one block, were also strong performers at the net for Central.
“When (coach Harrell) moved me to the outside, I knew it was going to be a challenge,” Jones said. “Syniah really motivated me and the team really motivated me to help. My swings started coming together and I really started to do it for the team.”
All three of Central’s seniors were key players in the match. Lauryn Waddell had four kills, one assist, two blocks, seven digs and a match-high three aces on 12 service points. Madeline Langdon had four kills, one block and 15 digs and held serve for a match-high 17 points. Alexis Gordon had two assists, 35 digs and one ace on four service points.
Carlee Harrell had a double-double, with one kill, 39 assists, 17 digs and two aces on 7 service points. Laurie Blackwell had one kill and 11 digs and held serve for nine points before leaving the match with an injury. Kayla Sadowski had one kill and five digs and held serve for one point. Howell had six digs and one ace on five service points. McMiller had four digs. Carlie Gardner and Angel Noto had one dig apiece.
Senior Myah Ainsworth had eight kills, senior Lily Bonner had seven kills, 29 assists and two aces on 10 service points, junior Josie Poston had five blocks and junior Savannah Birdsong had one ace on 13 service points to lead the Cavaliers (10-8, 6-3).
Prior to the match, Central honored its three seniors: Lauryn Waddell, Alexis Gordon and Madeline Langdon.
“Those girls have been a huge part of this program,” coach Harrell said. “I’m going to miss them as a coach and as just a person. I’ve known those girls for a long time. Alexis Gordon, I’ve known her since she was seven- or eight-years-old. They’re a very special group. And I was so proud that they came out and had a big night tonight and they had a lot of support tonight, because they deserve that.”
With the score tied 14-14 in the first set, a Jones kill, assisted by Carlee Harrell, started the Trojans on a 10-2 run. The Cavaliers fought off three set points before Waddell ended the set with a kill on an overpass.
The Cavaliers held a late 21-15 lead in the second set before Central went on an 8-2 run to tie the set. But two unanswered points ended the set in Southern Lee’s favor.
Holding an 11-10 lead in the third set, Southern Lee took control of the set with a 6-0 run and did not allow the lead to dip below five the rest of the set.
The Trojans opened the fourth set strong, going on a 10-2 run. Midway through the fourth, Central lost Blackwell, a strong defensive presence for the Trojans, to an apparent knee injury. After the injury, the Cavaliers went on a 12-5 run to tie the set 20-20.
With Blackwell, who subs in for Jones when she rotates to the back row, out, coach Harrell turned to Sadowski to bolster the back row. Both Jones and Sadowski were effective in their roles.
“They were (effective),” coach Harrell said. “I thought Kayla was doing really well in the back row and Ivanna was doing really well in the front row and they really complimented each other. They really helped us out when Laurie went down. I was really proud of them. They really stepped up.”
With the score tied 21-21, Central finished the set on a 4-1 run to send the match to a decisive fifth set.
“When Laurie went down, we kind of hit a lull,” McMiller said. “I thought about how much it meant to her and how she would feel about this game and how she would want us to play.”
“In the fourth set, we made a conscious effort to get the ball to Madeline,” coach Harrell said. “And she came through with two tremendous kills for us. That was really a momentum changer. That really propelled us on. And then probably one of the biggest plays was from Lauryn Waddell. We were scrapping for a point and she dove and dug a ball up and we sent it over the net and ended up scoring and we went on a four-point run. She really came up big for us.”
A strong start powered Central in the fifth set, as the Trojans opened with a 9-2 run and never allowed the lead to drop below five from there.
Harnett Central also won the junior varsity match 2-0.
Harnett Central ends the regular season on the road against conference and Harnett County rival Triton (9-12, 3-6) on the Hawks’ Senior Night on Thursday. Triton won the first meeting, rallying from down 2-0 to win 3-2 at Central on Oct. 1.
Harper Howell of Harnett Central makes a play at the net.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Syniah McMiller makes a block in Central’s win over Southern Lee.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Ivanna Jones drives a point across for Harnett Central.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Kayla Sadowski gets a dig for the Trojans on Tuesday.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Carlee Harrell sets for Central in Tuesday’s five-set victory.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Central players react after the final point of the match.
(Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
Central seniors, from left, are Lauryn Waddell, Alexis Gordon and Madeline Langdon. (Dunn Area Sports Photo/John Lucas)
