Western captures crown

PALMYRA — She may have been dethroned as Jefferson District player of the year, but Sarah Harper was plenty happy with her Thursday night.
The Western Albemarle senior got the result she was looking for, collecting 12 kills and 18 digs as the Warriors defeated Fluvanna County 3-1 (25-21, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23) in the district championship on the Flying Flucos’ home court.
“We would both go on runs,” Harper said. “We would have the momentum and then they would get an awesome kill and go on a run. It keeps you on your toes.”
Each time Western reached game point, it was Harper who had the ball set her way. In the decisive fourth game with the Warriors up 24-23, she put down a cross-court kill to put away the Flucos and set off a wild celebration from her teammates.
“Our whole team is really strong,” Harper said. “Anywhere our setter would have set the ball, they would have handled it just fine.”
It wasn’t easy for Western (22-1) in the fourth, with the Flucos keeping the game tight and tying the score at 23. After a Warriors timeout, Fluvanna’s Mandy Kline spiked the ball just wide, setting up Harper’s decisive kill.
The previous game went Western’s way early on as the Warriors held a four-point lead, but the Flucos (20-3) battled back to a 17-17 tie. Western was called for a double, giving Fluvanna a lead it would not relinquish.
Mia Loyd had four kills from that point forward and Fluvanna freshman Hannah Miller blocked Harper at the net to seal the game for the Flucos.
“It was the perfect storm for them,” said Western coach Lance Rogers. “They’re at home with their fans, with nothing on the line but pride. Both teams were just getting after it.”
The Warriors took control of the first two games with late runs. With the score tied at 20 in the first, Chastity Lacy started the winning streak with a block of Chelsie Tomko, followed by a pair of Fluvanna mistakes — a double hit and a spike that went just wide. Kristen Pack’s ace made it 24-20, and two points later, Harper put down a kill to end the game.
In the second game, Western opened up an 18-15 lead before Fluvanna battled back to within one point. Three Flucos doubles and a tip winner and an ace from Pack put Western at game point and Harper again ended it with a thunderous kill.
“You want to see how they handle tough matches,” Rogers said.
of his team. “You know how they handle easy matches, but you want to see how they do when they’re double-blocked and the fans are screaming.”
Loyd had 16 kills and one block for Fluvanna. Kayla Walker, named district player of the year after the match, had 10 kills and two aces and Mandy Kline added nine kills.
Chastity Lacy had seven kills for Western.
Ana Asher had seven kills of her own and added two blocks. Megan Adams had 21 assists and Riley Martin added 12. Elizabeth Via had eight digs.
In addition to Walker’s honor, Monticello coach John Mitchem was named district coach of the year.
Both teams advance to the Region II quarterfinals on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Western hosts Fauquier, while Fluvanna travels to Kettle Run.