A young group of Lady Viking golfers met Mountain Heritage last Thursday, October 7, for a friendly match at Mountain Glen Golf Course in Newland.
The golfers have participated in five tournaments thus far this season as the two-day Western Highlands Conference Golf Tournament quickly approaches in two weeks.
In spite of a shortage of tournaments and experience, this year’s team is a gritty group of players who love the game and, in some cases, are just learning to develop a love and skill for the sport.
“Our returning players have really developed into leaders,” first-year Avery head golf coach Kaitlyn Mattox stated on the course at Mountain Glen. “Kendra Puckett is a returning player who comes to mind as someone who has been really encouraging of her teammates and playing pretty well. Nikki Wright, one of our underclassmen, has really stepped up her game, shooting our low score last week and playing today as our No. 1 at today’s match. Our beginner players, Lexi Lane and MacKenzie Hayes, have really improved and impressed me. They had not picked up a club until August and are playing well enough already to play in tournaments.”
The team has received a great amount of assistance from several local courses but providing the facilities for the ladies to practice and hone their skills.
“Sugar Mountain and Mountain Glen have both been huge helps to us, while at the beginning of the season we played some at Eseeola Golf Course also,” Mattox said. “My husband Ryan works as a club pro at Grandfather Golf and Country Club, and he’s helped the girls with lessons and working with them on the course. The girls have had lots of support from everyone and we’re really thankful.”
With only a handful of tournaments remaining before the conference event, the team hopes to play competitively, but the coach also wants her players to enjoy the experience.
“I’ll be really proud of the girls when they come out of it with a positive attitude,” Mattox added. “I think as a young team we’ll do pretty well, but this year is definitely a developmental year and we’re hoping to find some new recruits from the eighth grade coming up.”
Cross Country Runs at Madison Invitational
The Avery cross country team traveled to Marshall on Tuesday, October 5, to run at the Madison Invitational Meet.The golfers have participated in five tournaments thus far this season as the two-day Western Highlands Conference Golf Tournament quickly approaches in two weeks.
In spite of a shortage of tournaments and experience, this year’s team is a gritty group of players who love the game and, in some cases, are just learning to develop a love and skill for the sport.
“Our returning players have really developed into leaders,” first-year Avery head golf coach Kaitlyn Mattox stated on the course at Mountain Glen. “Kendra Puckett is a returning player who comes to mind as someone who has been really encouraging of her teammates and playing pretty well. Nikki Wright, one of our underclassmen, has really stepped up her game, shooting our low score last week and playing today as our No. 1 at today’s match. Our beginner players, Lexi Lane and MacKenzie Hayes, have really improved and impressed me. They had not picked up a club until August and are playing well enough already to play in tournaments.”
The team has received a great amount of assistance from several local courses but providing the facilities for the ladies to practice and hone their skills.
“Sugar Mountain and Mountain Glen have both been huge helps to us, while at the beginning of the season we played some at Eseeola Golf Course also,” Mattox said. “My husband Ryan works as a club pro at Grandfather Golf and Country Club, and he’s helped the girls with lessons and working with them on the course. The girls have had lots of support from everyone and we’re really thankful.”
With only a handful of tournaments remaining before the conference event, the team hopes to play competitively, but the coach also wants her players to enjoy the experience.
“I’ll be really proud of the girls when they come out of it with a positive attitude,” Mattox added. “I think as a young team we’ll do pretty well, but this year is definitely a developmental year and we’re hoping to find some new recruits from the eighth grade coming up.”
Cross Country Runs at Madison Invitational
In the competition, Luke Wotell and MacKenzie Thomas finished the course as the top Avery male and female runner with times of 23 and 18 minutes, respectively.
“MacKenzie ran a very good race with it being her first of the season and actually her first race ever,” Avery head coach Reggie Oakes said after the meet. “She ran like a veteran on a tough course with some major hills involved! As a group we are hoping for more improvement leading into the conference.”
The Vikings will race at Jackson Park in Hendersonville for the Western Highlands Conference cross country meet on Wednesday, October 20.
Lady Vikings Volleyball Drops Matches to Tough Foes Hendersonville, Polk
In the home match with the Lady Bearcats, Avery’s junior varsity picked up a straight-set victory by scores of 26-24 and 25-21, respectively.
In the varsity contest, the Lady Vikings looked for a repeat performance of the thrilling five-set triumph earlier this season in Henderson County. Unfortunately for the Big Red, the Lady Bearcats played inspired volleyball. Perhaps fueled by its previous loss, Hendersonville earned the win in three straight sets by scores of 15-25, 24-26, and 19-25.
“I feel if we could have won that second game, we would have taken them to another five games like last time we played,” Avery head volleyball coach Kim Hayes said after the match. “Hendersonville is an awesome team, and to know that we beat them this year is unbelievable. Hendersonville has a huge winning reputation. Nobody is suppose to beat them and WOW, we did!”
Melinda Eggers led the Lady Vikings with eight kills, with seven kills, two service aces, and five digs from teammate Megan Robbins and five kills and six digs from Johanna Pittman. Megan Tennant and Lauren Burleson added three kills each, with 16 assists by Cassie Bumgarner and two service aces by Savannah Dellinger.
Last Thursday, the Lady Vikings were unable to come away with a victory over the Lady Wolverines, falling in straight sets. Despite the setback, the Lady Vikings experienced a number of positives to build on as it heads down the home stretch of the Western Highlands Conference season.
“Our defense at times was awesome. We made some incredible defensive plays, we just couldn't follow through with our offense,” Hayes said. “It just wasn't our night offensively, but defensive we made some really cool plays. Polk is another awesome team in our conference, one of the best in Western North Carolina. They have five hitters and a setter that really delivers, the best I have seen in a long time. They should do really well in the playoffs.”
Last week also marked the full-time return of Coach Hayes to the Avery bench, as she returns from maternity leave following the birth of a baby boy.
“It feels good to be back. Volleyball is just a huge part of my life, has been since I was 13,” Hayes shared. “The girls are working very hard and have had some huge wins this year. As we start winding down we can start thinking about playoffs. We will be a No. 2 seed with a huge possibility of getting a home game. With the tough competition we have had with our 2A teams in the conference, we have the chance of doing well in the playoffs. I hope for my seniors’ sake that we can start the playoffs strong and have a positive finish. They deserve to leave Avery volleyball with pride.”
Avery returned to the court on Monday, October 11, to host Madison, and travels to Mountain Heritage this Thursday, October 14, before returning home for Senior Night to host rival Mitchell on Tuesday, October 19.
