Jackson Volleyball Puts the Spike to Hoover 3-0 by Jackson Student Brooke H.

Volleyball is a sport that can be played and enjoyed by all ages and skill levels. Thursday night, at Jackson High School, it was ROCK’in as I entered the gym. The music was blaring, the student section for both Jackson and Hoover were filled with loud, dancing, and screaming students. Jackson’s parents were waving the Big Head’s of their seniors high into the air. As Hoover’s parents had bright orange foam fingers pointed to the sky.

As the Polar Bears warmed up on the floor, the Vikings stood in a line in front of their bench. Many players, with their arms crossed, studied their opponents’ strengths and weaknesses. As Hoover took the floor, Assistant Coaches Stephanie Tyo, Averie Elsass, and Tiffany O’Dell stood guard outside the team huddle as Coach Mary Kate Agona prepared the ladies for their match. As Jackson’s starters took the floor, Team Captains, #20 McKenna Weber,  #7 Olivia Hayes, and #5 Camden Dolan gave one last word of encouragement to their teammates.

Coming into tonight’s competition, here is the team comparisons:

KILLS:  HHS- 293     JHS- 280

TOTAL BLOCKS:  HHS-61     JHS- 42

SERVING ACES:  HHS- 54     JHS- 67

DIGS: HHS- 435     JHS- 290

ASSISTS:  HHS- 128     JHS- 202

RECEPTIONS: HHS- 451  JHS- 348

As Set 1 began, both Jackson and Hoover started off strong with showing their physical strength, agility, and good communication. I love how fast paced the game of volleyball is! You look away and you may just miss the best play of the night! All of a sudden, Jackson’s student section erupted, “Roof, Roof, Roof!!!.” That was directed towards Polar Bears middle blocker, #10 Khalia-leigh James. WOW! The 6’2” Junior soared above the net with an incredible block as the volleyball slammed onto the floor on Hoover’s side of the net. And as the evening went along, I lost count how many times the fans were chanting for #10 with – “Roof, Roof, Roof!

You could see one of Jackson’s first lines of defense was to do what it takes to keep the ball on Hoover’s side of the net during a rally. As the primary middle blocker, James was doing everything possible to keep the ball in the front row. She was fast in being able to read  Hoover’s attackers. The middle blocking position in volleyball is, arguable, the most demanding position on the court. Defending the entire net, in a competition with the offensive demands of attacking from both serve-receive and defensive transition, places significant challenges on the middle blocker. With that being said, Khalia-leigh James is an incredible athlete! She also is a fantastic hitter as she leads her team with not only the highest percentage of total blocks so far this season but also leads the team with the highest hitting percentage at 0.288. SET 1 Final:  JHS- 25  HHS- 16

 

SET 2 – Let’s talk a little bit about how Jackson transitioned to offense. Another spectacular sight was #20, Senior Captain McKenna Weber. McKenna is a 5’10” Outside Hitter and Defensive Specialist for the Lady Polar Bears. McKenna is also an outstanding blocker. But when it comes to kills – the vertical height and power this athlete has is exciting to see! McKenna leads the team in kills this season. A kill is an integral volleyball statistic that denotes a successful attack by an offensive team. The simple definition of a kill is an offensive attack that is non-returnable by the opponent and scores a point or side out for the offensive team. Each time the ball was set, and McKenna soared through the air, the crowd would go crazy in anticipation. Would she deliver another kill? Against Hoover, #20 was consistent and never failed to deliver. The crowd, throughout the evening, went absolutely wild! SET 2 Final:  JHS- 25  HHS – 12

 

SET 3 – Jackson bolted out to an 11 – 3 lead. Hoover’s Coach Amanda Humphrey calls timeout. You could see that Hoover was about to implement a new strategy. Their focus was stronger, and they were determined to not let this be their last set of the night. Hoover’s setter, #14 Brooklyn Griffiths, did an excellent job of running her offense. She tried everything she could to stop Jackson’s middle blocker James. You could tell Griffiths was hoping to stop James from being able to read where she was going to set the volleyball to. All night, the Vikings had been unable to get past Jackson’s front line blockers. Hoover’s new strategy was to try off-speed hitting and roll shots. They attacked the net by “tipping” the ball which is a soft and off-speed attack done with fingertips. They tried “dinking” the ball as well. A dink is a legal pushing of the ball over the blockers. Utilizing these approaches, Hoover was able to recover and close the gap 17-12.

On the next serve, Hoover won the point with what was the longest rally of the game, moving the score 17 -13. Hoover then followed with three consecutive points. Those points came from #2 Audrey Ellis who had two consecutive kills. And Hoover’s #18 Kailee Harrington followed with a tremendous kill of her own to now reduce the margin to 19-16. Sensing the momentum was shifting in Hoover’s favor, Head Coach Agona, from Jackson, called a timeout to regroup the squad. Jackson’s fans began to rumble. You could feel their positive support roll out of the stands towards their team. Jackson surged ahead to take the win of set three over the Hoover Vikings. SET 3 Final:  JHS-25 HHS – 19

 

With each point made, the energy and enthusiasm of the players and spectators increased, creating a positive energetic atmosphere. It was an unbelievable evening with our hearts pounding and stomachs filled with excitement! Congratulations Jackson Girls Volleyball!