The net had to feel a foot higher for Greeneville on Tuesday night because of Isabelle Karriker’s presence on the other side.
Chuckey-Doak’s towering middle did not just slam balls and blocks shots, she forced Greeneville to change where and how it attacked and that led the Lady Black Knights to an important 3-1 win on the road.
“Belle was literally big tonight,” Chuckey-Doak coach Marissa Snapp said. “It goes to show how well rounded she is. She blocks, she hits, she passes, she serves. She is doing everything and the other girls are feeding off of her. When she gets those big points everybody else gets 10 times more excited and it makes us want to push even more.”
Chuckey-Doak will hope its 3-1 win (19-25, 25-19, 25-17, 25-12) is a momentum builder as it had not been able to get over the hump against the top teams in District 1-AA until they topped Lady Devils on Tuesday. Now the attention turns to another tough league foe on Thursday when Sullivan East visits Afton.
“The girls played with consistency tonight and they played to the level they are capable of. It has taken us a little while to get to this point, but they are improving and really pushing hard,” Snapp said. “There is talent in this district. (Greeneville) beat us at our place, we beat them here. This is a hard group of teams to beat, and that is going to make for a very competitive district tournament.”
Karriker finished Tuesday with 15 kills and nine blocks, but she altered almost everything the Lady Devils tried to swing at and kept the momentum on Chuckey-Doak’s side of the net for most of the night.
On the outside Jacey Taylor provided the perfect counter punch with 21 kills, and her ability to play from both poles kept Greeneville guessing. She also had 21 digs.
“Something I love about Jacey is how smart she plays,” Snapp said. “Yes, she is strong, and yes she is a power hitter, but she reads the court and see the court through net so well. That is a huge advantage for us.”
Chloe Kirkpatrick delivered 38 assists and 10 digs, Jayden Myers had eight digs and two blocks, and Hayden Kenney had 12 digs for Chuckey-Doak.
Tuesday’s action started with Chuckey-Doak letting the lead slip away in the first set, but they came back undeterred and laid claim to final three sets.
Chuckey-Doak started the opening frame with a kill from Kallie Dobson and jumped in front 4-1.
Aubree Honeycutt came up with a tough block for Greeneville that tied things at 4-4.
Karriker then got going with a first-hit slam. She followed with two more kills and Taylor hammered two from the left side to put the Lady Black Knights in front 10-5.
The Lady Greene Devils kept at it and tied things at 13-13 when Katie Johnson dropped in consecutive aces.
A block and kill by Karriker put Chuckey-Doak back in front briefly, but another ace by Riley Ireland tied things at 17-17.
Kills by Leah Ford and Johnson followed and Greeneville secured a 25-19 win.
“There were definitely too many unforced error on our end in that first set. We have to keep our side of the net clean no matter what is happening in the other side,” Snapp said.
In the second set consecutive blocks by Karriker put Chuckey-Doak in front 4-2 and the Lady Black Knights played from in front the rest of the way.
In the early going errors let Greeneville hang around, but after a tricky dump by Kirkpatrick and a block from Myers the lead grew to 11-6.
The Lady Devils got as close as 14-13 when Honeycutt tipped one around Karriker’s block attempt.
Chuckey-Doak then pushed the lead out to 21-14 with a stretch that included two kills from Taylor, Kirkpatrick tipping one over the defense, and Myers scoring on a tough, right-side block.
Taylor finished the 25-19 win with an ace.
In the set Greeneville only landed two kills because, largely because of Karriker overwhelming presence at the net.
The third set began with Hayleigh Seidl landing a pair of kills that put Chuckey-Doak in front 4-2.
Again, Chuckey-Doak stayed in front to the finish.
Karriker and Taylor each came up with a kill and block, and after Kirpatrick went behind her back with a dump the Lady Knight held a 13-6 advantage.
With Jessie Dayton serving Chuckey-Doak took its biggest lead at 23-12.
Greeneville fought back with two right-side kills from Natalie Knights and a kill from Kinsley Spano, but it was not enough as Chuckey-Doak prevailed 25-17.
The fourth set was close in the early going but after Taylor slammed one from the right side Chuckey-Doak led 10-6.
A kill from Gabby Atchison and an ace from Johnson closed the gap to 12-10.
Karriker swung the momentum by scoring on three blocks in a four-point stretch to put the Lady Knights in front 17-11.
In the final three points of the night Taylor took the air out of the ball with a blistering slam from the left side, Karriker sent one to the floor from the middle and Dayton ended things on an ace.
“The energy in final set was insane,” Snapp said. “It came from the court and the bench and those JV girls on the sideline. That is a reflection of how much we preach about being good teammates. When you feel that energy from your teammates it lets you pour it into others.”
