Rebels take down Rockcastle in first region game; West next
Published 7:58 pm Tuesday, October 24, 2017
Boyle County volleyball is on a hot streak.
The Rebels upset Lincoln County in straight sets last week in the 45th District championship, and on Tuesday, Boyle took down Rockcastle County 3-1 (25-14, 17-25, 25-11, 28-26) in the quarterfinals of the 12th Region tournament.
“I know that we could definitely not count them out because they’ve played up against some really tough teams this season and held their own really well,” Boyle County head coach Andrea Craig said. “They came out to play last night for sure and rallied back hard. It was a hard fought game all the way around, we’re fortunate to come out on the winning side.”
The Rebels had standout performances from multiple members of the squad on Tuesday: Sierra Dean had an ace, six kills and a team-high 21 digs. Mya Van Steenlandt had two aces, a team-high nine kills and 18 digs, and Tessa Linville led the team with three aces and 20 digs.
Craig said it has been a team effort since the start of the district tournament. Boyle took down Garrard County 3-1 in the district tournament semifinals, a team that had beaten them 3-1 earlier in the year.
Lincoln was a team that hadn’t been touched all year in 45th District play, going 8-0 without a dropped game.
The head coach said that she and her team were both fired up to prove their doubters wrong in the tournament.
“That’s definitely something that I do not believe people thought was going to be the case a week ago,” Craig said. “I think that the girls got a fire lit underneath them, I think it was a little bit of them and a little bit of me, combined, and they just came out driven last Thursday night and took care of business against Lincoln County and stunned a lot of people, and I think including themselves in some respects. They know now that they have the capability to put Lincoln County away in three sets. Lincoln County is a great team as well, but it could’ve been a lot different for us. We’re happy to keep moving on and advancing to the semis (on Thursday).”
Craig said that senior setter Brittney Kincaid has been instrumental in the improvement of the team this postseason. She finished the Rockcastle game with two kills, 18 digs and 21 assists.
“Brittney Kincaid, one of my seniors and my setter this year, I think that definitely in the last week, she’s been on her A-game,” Craig said. “If she had not have been, and if she didn’t step up into that leadership role that she sometimes she wavered from this season, we probably wouldn’t have this conversation right now.”
Next up for Boyle will be 12th Region powerhouse West Jessamine, who won more regular-season games — 27 — than any other team in the region. The Colts won the region tournament last year and have only one loss in region play this year.
“I expect West Jess to come out with a fire. They’re a great team,” Craig said. “We watched them play before we played on Tuesday night. They’ve got some really, really good players and they play well as a team. I think that if my girls just come out with the mentality that it doesn’t matter who’s on the opposite side of the net from you. Just play their game, play solid volleyball, don’t get rattled, and I think we could give them a good run for their money.”