The Nation Ford Falcons continued their local girls’ volleyball dominance with another convincing win in straight sets.
The Falcons swept the Catawba Ridge Copperheads 3-0 (25-14, 25-17, 25-18) improving to 9-1 overall and 4-0 in Region 3-4A. Catawba Ridge dropped to 8-7 overall and 2-2 in the region.
“We played Nation Ford volleyball,” said Falcons’ head coach Craig Brown. “I wanted to play aggressive and we did.”
The match started with both teams looking to figure the other out. Tied at three, Nation Ford scored four straight points to open a gap for themselves. After a timeout by the Copperheads, they put together a run to tie the set at seven.
Nation Ford’s strength started to show through as they scored 11 of the next 15 points forcing Catawba Ridge into a second timeout.
The Falcons kept pulling away in the set after the timeout to go up 1-0 with a 25-14 set win.
Nation Ford kept the momentum in their corner and started the second set going up 6-2.
The biggest difference was the Falcons’ play at the net and their return game. Nation Ford found ways for kills and kept the Copperheads off balance. Catawba Ridge had a hard time keeping the volley going and was constantly hitting it long beyond the back line.
Nation Ford wasn’t threatened in the second set after the quick start and won 25-17 to go up 2-0.
The Falcons again started strong, but was unable to really pull away in the third set early on as Catawba Ridge kept it close. The Copperheads pulled within one at 6-5, however, Nation Ford scored four straight points to again open a gap.
Catawba Ridge didn’t roll over but rallied to tie the set at 11. The Copperheads played better in the third set, but the Falcons were able to maintain the lead.
Nation Ford started to widen the gap before a Catawba Ridge timeout. Out of the timeout, the Falcons continued to control the set and swept the match with a 25-18 win in the third set.
Sept. 10 Roundup
The Fort Mill girls’ tennis team improved to 6-0 overall and 2-0 in Region 2-5A with a 4-2 over Dorman. Winning for Fort Mill was Abhi NallaReddy 7-5, 6-3; Avalon Stevens 6-2, 6-4; Siona Soman 6-1, 6-3 and Ellie Corbett and Evie Dyer 6-3, 6-3 in doubles.
The Catawba Ridge girls’ golf team won the Lady Trojans tournament at Lancaster Golf Course with a team total 320. Brooke Mehlhouse led with a one under par 72 to finish first. Bella Troxler finished with an 82 and both Ella Rose Hill and Ella Gaither shot rounds of 83. Fort Mill was second with a 338. They were led by Addie Lupton with a 76, good enough for second overall. Claire Collins shot an 80 for the Jackets, while Lauren Venino finished with an 87. Skylar Sartwell rounded out the scoring for Fort Mill with a 95.
The Fort Mill boys’ volleyball team fell to Dorman 3-0 and are now 3-7 overall on the season and 0-1 in Region 2-5A.
The Fort Mill girls’ volleyball team fell to Dorman 3-0 and are now 6-4 overall on the season and 0-1 in Region 2-5A.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
