On a raucous and rowdy Thursday night that had Rebel Hill rocking the West Greene volleyball team took control of District 1-A by claiming a 3-1 win over South Greene, 23-25, 25-23, 27-25, 25-15.
“I think both sides were fighting very hard. It was a good match, a competitive match and I love matches like this,” West Greene coach Raven Borie said. “I was really proud of my girls for being able to maintain their focus and pull through in such a big environment on somebody else’s court. I think they proved tonight that they are capable of playing in this kind of match, and hopefully that continues.”
It was a night that had the feel of a postseason elimination game with the crowd on its feet and emotions reverberating through both benches. With the hard-fought win the Lady Buffaloes improved to 4-0 in district play at the midway point in the schedule and they handed South Greene its first loss in league play.
“The energy was there tonight, both sides were up for this one,” South Greene coach Stephen Gregg said. “You have to win the close ones when the energy is shifting like that. We have to be better at winning when the game gets heated up. But we know this is a competitive conference, and I expect a good district tournament. I’m proud of the way my girls fought, and we know we will see them at least one more time.”
Tied at 1-1 the night’s momentum swung when the Lady Buffaloes dug deep and rallied to a third-set win.
West Greene played from in front early in the set, but a well-placed push by Kortnei Bailey beat the defense and tied things at 10-10. Bailey then sent a kill down the left boundary and followed it up with a second-hit kill that made it 12-10.
An ace by Jaelyn Fillers made it 19-15 and South Greene’s lead reached 23-16 after Whitney Reaves and Bailey came up with consecutive kills.
With their backs against the wall the Lady Buffaloes never stopped fighting and they got the serve back when Addy Peters and Deborah Julian combined for a block.
South Greene still made it 24-19 on another kill by Bailey, but West Greene kept at it with Madi Evans serving. Evans started the run with an ace and tied things at 24-24 with another ace.
A errant tip gave West Greene the lead at 25-24 and Cassidy Hill finished the 27-25 win with powerful slam from the middle.
“That set shifted the momentum. I was really proud of Madi stepping up serving in a pressure filled situation. It was a tough one, but I was really proud that the girls stayed calm and pulled themselves back into it. Even when we lost a point here or there they continued to work hard together, and it was a team effort.”
With the wind at their backs the Lady Buffaloes were able to finish things off in the fourth set with a 25-15 win.
The set got started with an ace from Hill and a kill from Aleea Aiken for a 5-2 West Greene lead. The advantage reached 10-5 when Hill landed a kill from the back row.
The teams traded points to 14-10, but after two aces from Journey Lamons West Greene held an 18-10 advantage.
In the closing stretch West Greene got a kill, a tip and a block from Hill while Morgan Moody and Aiken also landed kills.
“We have to find a way to win the third set. When you are up in the rubber match you have to win it, and I think that one really took the wind out of our sails. We never got excited in the fourth set, and we let them run with it,” Gregg said.
The night started with a hotly contested first set in which South Greene was able to pull out a 25-23 win.
West Greene played from in front early but Emma Padget found a spark with a big block that closed the gap to 12-11, and then she began to take over the match. The South Greene Freshman landed four consecutive kills and put the Lady Rebels in front 15-12.
South Greene’s biggest lead came at 18-13 when Ava Brobeck got an ace to fall.
West Greene took advantage of a couple of South Greene mistakes to close the gap to 21-20. Then an ace by Keasley Hankins and two missed swings from the Lady Buffaloes made it 24-20.
Bailey finished the 25-23 win with a big swing that West Greene got under but ultimately could not get back over the net.
Padgett stayed hot going into the second set and put down two quick kills for a 3-1 Lady Rebels’ lead.
The advantage reached 12-8 when Bailey smashed a kill from the left side.
West Greene flipped the lead to 16-15 when Moody landed an ace. That lead grew to 21-18 when Lamons sent over a serve that South Greene could not send back.
Two big swings from Bailey moved South Greene back in front at 22-21, but a double hit and a missed kill gave the lead back to West Greene.
Hill finished out the 25-23 West Greene win with a thundering slam that drew the match even at 1-1.
West Greene volleyball carried out a 3-1 win (23-25, 25-23, 27-25, 25-15) at South Greene on Thursday for an important District 1-1A win. Hear from Head Coach Raven Borie and how West Greene gritted out some close set wins. pic.twitter.com/OWPO8SXDAO
— GreeneSportsZone (@GSportsZone) September 12, 2025
