On Tuesday, October 14th, the Avery Lady Vikings volleyball team traveled to Marshall to take on the Madison Lady Patriots. The varsity squad battled to take one set in the best-three-out-of-five match, but the home team Lady Patriots held off the Big Red charge to take the match in four sets.Last Thursday night the Avery Lady Vikings hosted their final home match of the season, tangling with the Lady Cougars from Mountain Heritage. The Lady Vikings junior varsity team captured the first set in their best-of-three match by a 25-21 final score. In a hard fought second set, the Cougars battled in come-from-behind fashion to even the match at a set apiece with a 27-25 win.
In the rubber set of the match, Avery built an early advantage and led 22-11 midway through the last set. The Lady Cougars cut the deficit but Avery finished the match in style with a 25-17 victory.
Thursday's match was originally set as Senior Night, but since the 2009 Lady Vikings have no seniors on its roster, the Avery volleyball parents and players honored head coach Kim Hayes and assistant Caroline Turner for their time and efforts. The coaches were presented with flowers by the players in an emotional pre-match recognition.
As for the match itself, the Lady Vikings played inspired and put up a valiant fight against a tall and talented Lady Cougars club. Heritage used a number of strong kills and a power game to deny victory to the Big Red, defeating Avery in straight sets by scores of 25-18, 25-16, and 25-19, respectively.Avery traveled to Mitchell on Tuesday night as the Lady Mountaineers celebrated Senior Night. The Avery junior varsity team started the night with a three-set win over the Lady Mountaineers by scores of 15-25, 26-24, and 25-16, respectively.
The varsity team came out looking for a season sweep over Mitchell, winning the first set by a dominant score of 25-14. Mitchell battled back in the second set to tie the match, winning 25-21. Avery was not to be denied on the evening, capturing the third set 25-13 and pulling away in set four to win 25-16 and take the Western Highlands Conference victory.
Chances are good that the Lady Vikings will be hosting West Wilkes in an opening round matchup of the NC high school playoffs on Saturday. We’ll have the official word on the Lady Vikings playoff fate when brackets are released later in the week by the NCHSAA.
