Lady Yoe clinch playoff spot
The Lady Yoe volleyball team swept the Florence Lady Buffaloes on Friday 3-0 and the Rockdale Tigerettes 3-1 on Tuesday night. With the win Tuesday, the Lady Yoe have officially clinched their first playoff appearance since 2014.
That puts the Lady Yoe in a tie for second place in the district. The ladies will play Rogers in a playoff seeding game hosted by Rockdale at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 29. The winner will advance to the bi-district round as the District 19 runners-up while the loser will advance as the third seed.
They won the first set 25-22, 25-18 in the second set, and 25-19 in the third set to complete the sweep and continue their amazing season.
“It feels absolutely incredible,” Coach Maria Gonzalez said. “I am so proud of these girls for trusting us and believing in their capabilities. For many, this is the first playoff experience and I’m so honored to be a part of it.”
Then Tuesday’s game was just as impressive as the Lady Yoe defeated the Rockdale Lady Tigers 3-1.
The first three points of the first set went to Cameron. Rockdale scored the next two points but the Lady Yoe then got two consecutive aces from Kaly White (3) for a 6-2 lead. The set stayed even until Cameron got a kill from Haley Tucker (6) to make the lead 12-9. Cameron later got a kill from Ainsley Driska (4) to give the Lady Yoe a 14-10 lead. Rockdale marched back and tied the score at 15 and took the lead 16-15. Cameron took back the lead by getting a clutch kill from Tucker and an ace by Driska to give their team a 18-16 lead. Rockdale came back again and regained the lead at 19-18.
The Lady Yoe tied the score back up at 20 on a kill by Jessa Florez (13). Cameron went on to score five of the next six points and won the first set 25-21 on another clutch shot for a kill from Florez.
The second set started slow for Cameron as the first three points went to Rockdale. Cameron broke the drought with an incredible spike for a kill from Driska and came back to tie the score at 3. The set stayed even until Rockdale took a 7-4 lead. Cameron’s deficit grew to 10-5, but Cameron mounted a comeback and scored four straight points to make it a 10-9 score. Cameron continued to creep back in and tied the set at 13.
The Lady Yoe took the lead 15-14, then made the score 16-14 on a kill from Sydni Smith (1). Cameron then got another point on a kill from Driska for a 19-16 lead. The Lady Yoe continued to thrive with a block by Smith for a 21-16 lead. The Lady Yoe finished the set strong and went on to win the second set 25-17.
“We came out consistent and our out of system ball game has really picked up,” Gonzalez said. “We did a great job serving tough and getting them out of system.”
The first point of the third set went to Cameron. The Lady Yoe would get an ace from White for a 3-1 lead. Rockdale stormed back and tied it at 5, then the Lady Tigers went on to take the lead 6-5. The set stayed even until Rockdale took a 17-13 lead and eventually Cameron’s deficit grew to 20-15. The Lady Yoe got a block by Driska for a 20-17 game, but the deficit for Cameron grew to 23-19 and they would lose the third set 25-22.
The first five points of the fourth set went to Cameron. Rockdale scored the next three points, but Cameron got a kill from Driska for a 6-3 lead. Rockdale marched back and tied the score at 8. The set went back and forth until Cameron got on a roll and gained a 15-11 lead on a magnificent serve for an ace from Tucker. They continued their hot streak on a kill from Smith that gave Cameron a 20-14 lead followed by a kill from Tucker for a commanding 23-17 lead. The Lady Tigers tried to mount a comeback but fell short as the Lady Yoe held on to win the fourth set 25-22 on a block by Florez to win the match.
“Our girls were really resilient tonight,” Gonzalez said. “Our hitters wanted to score and we’ve speeded up our tempo that has made our offense faster and better.”
Kirsten Marin (2) played well as she recorded an ace and ten digs. Sydni Smith had two aces, four blocks, seven kills, and four digs. Haley Tucker had five aces, fourteen kills, and 15 digs. Ainsley Driska had an ace, six digs, two blocks, and 25 kills. Kaley White recorded four aces, four digs, and 50 assists.