For two sets the top ranked Cleveland volleyball team looked like the No. 1 team in the state. The like a puff of smoke in a strong wind the Lady Raiders disappeared and Knoxville Catholic took over winning three straight sets to defeat Cleveland 3-2.
The Lady Raiders stormed out of the gate with wins in the first two sets by scores of 25-20 and 25-22.
From there it was all Fighting Irish as the Knox Catholic girls won the third set 26-24 and demolished Cleveland 25-17 in set four. The tiebreaker went to the Irish by a 15-11 margin.
“I thought we came out really strong the first two sets. Then our energy died and we started having a lot of unforced errors and that's what happens. You can't do that against a good team and they are a very good team,” said a disappointed Lady Raiders head coach Amy McGowan.
The Lady Raiders took an early 7-3 lead in the first set using kills from Lauren and Addison Hurst combined with a Gunny Brock ace. Kinslee McGowan served up an ace minutes later to put Cleveland out front 16-11. Kills by Laureh Hurst and Brock gave the Lady raiders a 19-12 lead. An ace by Lauren Hurst and a pair of Addison Hurst kills kept Cleveland out front 23-16. Addison Hurst gave th first set to th Lady Raiders with a final kill.
Cleveland powered to a 12-6 lead in the second set before the Irish blasted back with nine straight points to take a 15-12 lead. The teams traded punches down the stretch with Lauren Hurst, McGowan and Addison Hurst providing the firepower as the score tied five times before Lauren Hurst sent a shot to the floor to put the Lady Raiders on top 23-21. The Irish picked up a final point before a long serve put the set into the hands of the Lady Raiders.
The Lady Irish took control in set three with seven consecutive points to open as Cleveland fell victim to its own mistakes. Catholic built an 18-10 advantage before a series of errors cut the gap to 19-14. The Lady Raiders oushed back late tying the score 23-23 on an ace by Addison Brock. Addisoin Hurst knotted the score once more at 24-24, but a pair of miscues gave the Lady Irish the win.
The Lady Raiders were nowhere to be found in the fourth set of the night. Knox Catholic jumped to a 5-1 lead and never looked back as the Irish pushed the margin to 14-9 and 21-12 before closing out the set to send the match to the tiebreaker.
In the final set of the night, the Irish again took the early lead, but the Lady Raiders managed to stay close and trailed 8-7 after a Lauren Hurst kill. Catholic rolled off four straight points on Cleveland errors to lead 12-7 and led 14-10 before a Cleveland long serve ended the night with a Knox Catholic win.
“I really don't know what happened,” said McGowan of just the second loss for Cleveland. “The last two games tonight are the same way we played all weekend. Very inconsistent, up and down like a roller coaster. We've got to fix that by this time tomorrow.”
The Lady Raiders return to district volleyball tonight as they host Rhea County.