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Cottey volleyball dominates home opener
By Eric Wade
Daily Mail Sports Editor
"I will tell you, my players are excited about being at home."
The Cottey College Comets and head coach Marla Kannady Foreman got an opportunity Tuesday night they haven't had all season long -- playing at home. They took full advantage of the excitement and psychological edge that always provides, putting on a dominant performance in a 25-6, 25-4, 25-12 victory.
"You add the excitement about their first home match, you know, showing up for the crowd, a lot of energy," Foreman said. "That just keyed into an all-out attack."
The Comets entered the contest knowing they would have not only the home-court edge, but also the edge provided by having already beaten the Lady Patriots of Baptist Bible College once this season. In the first matchup on Sept. 19, the Comets defeated Baptist Bible by the final scores of 25-10, 25-11 and 25-8, in Springfield.
That and home-court advantage weren't the only things working against the Lady Patriots, however. Thanks to injuries to some key players, Lady Patriots head coach Denise Thrower was forced to change her lineup the day before the match.
"When we went there, we played a 10-, 11- and eight-point ballgame with them," Foreman said. "So, tonight, I think there was nervousness about their lineup and just little factors that kind of got in the way for them."
The Comets came out firing on all cylinders Tuesday night, using all of those factors to their advantage and the energy with which they played paid immediate dividends on the scoreboard. After the Comets scored six of the first seven points of the match, it was clear that it could be a very long night for the Lady Patriots.
The Comets never did let up and eventually forced Thrower to call a timeout after taking a 10-3 lead. Thrower's efforts didn't seem to do much in the way of convincing her team to step up its play as the Comets eventually extended the lead to 22-3 before Baptist Bible was able to score again. By that time, it was simply too little, too late, and the Comets held on to take the 19-point victory.
"I want to see that continually," Foreman said of her squad's energy and dominance. "I definitely noticed a, 'Hey, we're finally at home,' energy going on and I told them it better last the whole month because it's a nice thing to see."
For the majority of the match, the biggest issue the Comets presented to the opposition was serving. Morgan Wheatley entered the night as the season aces leader for the Comets and kept right at what she's done all year, serving five aces in the opening set alone.
"She's right now, currently, on the team, holding the highest ace total for the team and that there is obviously why," Foreman said of the 5-foot, 2-inch defensive specialist.
Things just got better for the Comets as the match moved into the second set. Baptist Bible never did get much of anything going in the set and the Comets took full advantage, scoring the first five points of the set.
The Lady Patriots eventually were able to maintain that deficit until the Comets' seemingly unstoppable serves sent the home team on a 16-0 run that put the set out of reach. Baptist Bible was ultimately able to score just once more as the Comets took a 21-point victory to move within one set of closing out the match.
As the second set began, the Comets encountered some of the same issues they have battled all season long as poor passing and communication allowed the Lady Patriots to stay in it early. That and the fact that the visitors stepped up nearly every aspect of their game kept the set tied through the first 10 points.
"Our passing has improved over the season, but it's, you know, definitely not where we want it to be as a team because we're going to face stiffer competition and we struggle sometimes with our passing, which takes us out of system," Foreman said. "And when you're out of system, you just don't have that nice set to get the main kill."
The Comets eventually got things figured out, however, and were once again able to put together a long run before eventually closing out the match with a 13-point victory.
Wheatley ultimately finished with a team-high 10 aces on the night, while Regan Kannady added six, Cassie Hale recorded five and Kelsey Davidson served the last two of the Comets' 23 aces. Hale finished with a team-high six kills, while Davidson, Kannady, Jalilah Cox and Maddie Lugenbeel each had one block.
With the win, the Comets improved to 4-8 on the season and will finish out the remainder of the regular season at home. The first of Cottey's six remaining matches at home is set for 2 p.m., Saturday, when the Comets host Labette County Community College, in the gym at Hinkhouse Center.