GPS Volleyball Impressive In Sweep Of Baylor

Bruisers Win 25-12, 25-17 & 25-19 Against Short-Handed Lady Raiders

  • Saturday, September 19, 2020
  • John Hunt

Sarah Lail has been the head volleyball coach for the Baylor Lady Red Raiders for a long time, but she’s never been through a season like the current one.

It’s been different for everyone with the Covid 19 challenges, but the Baylor team has been quarantined twice and their schedule has been turned upside down with matches being cancelled and tournaments called off.

If that’s not enough distraction, Lail suspended seven players, including five key starters, for violation of team rules this week and they missed Baylor’s last two matches.  It’s been a tough stretch as the Lady Raiders are currently in the middle of a three-match losing streak, including a sweep against arch-rival GPS on Saturday afternoon at Baylor.

 Give credit to the Bruisers as they played really well in their latest outing.  Certainly one of the most improved teams in Chattanooga this fall, GPS improved to 10-5 with the three-set sweep in a match that really wasn’t that close.

Set scores were 25-12, 25-17 and 25-19.

Baylor falls to 3-4 overall following Saturday’s loss.

The Bruisers have had moments of brilliance, but they’ve also endured matches where they played really well before going in the opposite direction and losing for no good reason.  They had a short lull at the start of the second set when Baylor scored the first seven points and had an 8-2 before a timeout, but they played smart volleyball for the most part and got rewarded with a huge win on the road.

First-year GPS coach Bailey Winel was all smiles when Saturday’s match ended.

“Things got a little tense to start the second set, but I thought we played together and communicated as well as we have all season,” Winel suggested.

“No team is perfect, but I’m 100 percent happy with today’s results.  I didn’t know about the missing Baylor players until I got here today and I’m sure that hurt them, but we had a great day with blocks and setting hitters.

“Claire (Nicola) and Chapel (Cunningham) both played really well and I thought Bella (Jenkins) and Ansley (Blevins) did a good job of dominating up front.  I know things might be different the next time we play, but this match today gives us confidence that we can play with just about anyone.  But it was a total team effort and I’m really happy,” Winel concluded.

Losing five-set matches to Knoxville Catholic and Signal Mountain earlier this week was tough, but Baylor’s Lail was well aware of the challenge her team faced against the Bruisers.  The results weren’t what she would have liked, but she was proud of the way her younger and less experienced players stepped up and battled for all they were worth.

“It’s been a crazy season to be sure, but I’m really proud of how these young ladies stepped up and played their hearts out today.  This team has all kinds of potential, so if we can just keep battling and get through all of this adversity, we’ll be okay,” Lail began.

“Give a lot of credit to GPS as they played a great match today.  It’s all a learning process for us right now, but our goal is to be good in October.  It’s a long way from over,” she added.

Four straight service points from Nicola allowed GPS to break an 8-8 tie for a lead Baylor never regained.

Nine straight service points from McKamey Bratcher extended a 15-11 lead to 24-11.  A block from Baylor’s Sierra Herndon delayed the inevitable for the moment, but a hitting error on the next volley gave the visitors the 25-12 win and the early advantage.

Lilly Stewart knocked down seven straight service points to start the second set and Winel called a timeout when it was 8-2 to settle her girls down a bit.  Nine straight service points from Nicola midway through the set turned an 11-5 Baylor lead into a 14-11 GPS advantage and Baylor never recovered.

An ace from Kylie Barry shortly afterward gave the Bruisers the eight-point win and all kinds of momentum going into the third.

The Lady Red Raiders never led in the final set, although the score was tied twice at 1-1 and 3-3.  Again, the Bruisers kept the pressure on and never backed down, clinching the match when Baylor’s last serve ended up in the net.

Cunningham was one of the leaders for GPS as she finished the match with 10 kills, 10 assists and an ace.  Jenkins and Blevins both had five blocks with Blevins adding six kills.

Herndon had seven kills, four digs and three blocks for Baylor while Lilly Stewart had 14 assists and Morgan Sharpe 16 digs.

GPS has a busy week coming up with a road match at Grace Academy (played at Morris Hill Baptist Church) on Monday, followed by home matches on Tuesday and Thursday with Red Bank and Knox. Catholic.

Baylor will be on the road for its next two matches, including at Chattanooga Christian on Tuesday and at Boyd-Buchanan on Thursday.

GPS STATS:

Kylie Barry – 2 kills, 5 digs

Ansley Blevins – 5 blocks, 6 kills

McKamey Bratcher – 3 digs, 2 aces

Chapel Cunningham – 10 kills, 10 assists, 1 ace

Isabella Jenkins – 5 blocks

Claire Nicola – 3 kills, 2 aces

Abbie Reel – 7 digs

Reagen Ziegler – 1 kill, 3 digs.

BAYLOR STATS:

Frances Brantley – 3 kills, 8 digs, 2 aces, 1 block

Hannah Barger – 2 digs

Lilly Stewart – 14 assists, 7 digs, 1 ace

Daphne Chi – 1 kill, 13 digs

Nadia Sixto – 3 kills, 2.5 blocks

Holland Moss – 3 kills, .5 block

Sierra Herndon – 4 digs, 7 kills, 3 blocks

Morgan Sharpe – 16 digs.

(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)

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