Triton’s varsity volleyball team opened Tri-County Six 3-A Conference play on Tuesday with a 3-0 win over visiting Lee County by scores of 25-19, 25-21 and 25-14.

“The girls have been working hard in practice,” said Triton coach Wendy Simmons. “We’ve been scaling it back a little bit and trying to focus on the things that we do well and make them better instead of trying to do too many things. I think there’s been a big difference in that.”

Senior Evie Pollard was effective both at the net and the service line for the Hawks (5-6, 1-0 TCSC), with seven kills and seven aces on 15 service points.

“At the beginning of the season, I told Mrs. Simmons that I would step up and be a leader on the court and I would not miss as many serves,” Pollard said. “And tonight, I definitely was not missing as many serves.”

Junior Bethany Norris matched Pollard’s seven kills and also had a block to also lead Triton up front.

“I just try my best to, maybe not be the strongest hitter on the team, but be the smartest hitter,” Norris said. “I try to always find a way to get a ball in the place that it needs to be.”

“She’s a big presence at the net and a big block,” Simmons said. “I don’t know how she gets it done sometimes, but sometimes she just manages to place the ball and score the points.”

Freshman Leah Brannon was a leader on both offense and defense for Triton, with six kills and 14 digs.

“I played some travel with some of the other girls, so it made it easier being the new kid (Brannon previously played at Cape Fear Christian Academy) and being new,” Brannon said. “I’ve done a lot of private lessons and I’ve tried to work really hard on getting my spot placing and my timing down right. And everybody’s telling me if I have two (blockers), if I have one, if line’s open or if the middle of the court’s open. So, that helps, too.”

“She’s put in some extra practices,” Simmons said. “She’s practiced with the JV some and gets some extra swings in on Sundays. And when you work like that, you’re going to make improvements and it’s going to make all the difference in the way you play.”

Tyler Grace Gamblin had three kills, eight assists, nine digs and one ace on three service points. Breigh Hobbs had two kills, 15 assists, two digs and three aces on seven service points. Breonna McNeill had two kills and two digs. Gracyn Slaughter had one kill, one assist, 12 digs and two aces on five service points. Pollard had two assists and four digs. Norris had two digs and one ace on four service points. Chelby Pascale had one ace on three service points. Brannon held serve for five points.

“We’re definitely getting a lot better with our serves,” Pollard said. “And the defense is getting a lot better and the offense is getting a lot better than at the beginning of the season.”

The Yellow Jackets (1-8, 0-1) were led by junior Jordan Hulsey, with three kills and eight assists.

Triton held a 15-10 lead in the first set when Lee rallied with a 6-1 run to tie it 16-16. But the Hawks responded with a 9-3 run to take the 1-0 match lead.

Midway through the second set, Lee held a 14-10 lead when Pollard, who had no kills at that point, got hot to spark a Triton rally. The Hawks went on a 6-1 run, including four Pollard kills, all assisted by Hobbs, to take the lead. Later, with the set tied 20-20, Triton ended the set with a 5-1 run, capped by back-to-back Norris kills, the first assisted by Hobbs and the second assisted by Slaughter.

“I was getting my timing right,” Pollard said. “I was adjusting to sets better. My timing is better and I’m hitting the right spots to help us win.”

“(Pollard)’s a great hitter,” Simmons said. “I don’t know why sometimes she’s a little unsure of herself in the beginning, but we need to get her the ball. It’s pretty obvious. I know sometimes she might get a little discouraged when she gets a block every now and then, but once she gets past that mentality, her confidence starts building and she plays a lot smarter.”

Holding an 8-7 lead in the third set, Triton went on a 10-3 run to fully take control of the set. The match later ended on three straight aces from Pollard.

Triton travels to conference foe Southern Lee on Wednesday. The match was moved up from Thursday due to an issue arranging for referees for the match.

“Just remember what we’re capable of doing,” Simmons said. “And the things that we can do well, make sure we focus on doing those things and not try to do things that we’re not ready to do yet.”