Purcellville, Va. — In their first regular season meeting just a week and a half earlier, the Loudoun County High School volleyball team limited Woodgrove to a maximum of 18 points in each set of the 3-set sweep. When the two teams met again on October 27 in Purcellville, it was a different story. Each of the first three sets went extra points as both sides battled for the win. Although the Wolverines came out on top in the third to extend the match an extra set, the Captains ultimately came away with the 27-25, 28-26, 24-26, 25-14 victory to remain perfect in the Catoctin District.
Woodgrove started the game off with the lead behind a kill and an ace from senior middle hitter Coco Mercker (10 kills, 7 blocks, 3 digs, 2 aces, 1 assist). Loudoun County senior outside hitter Jo Seekford (14 kills, 3 digs, 1 block, 1 assist) then notched 3 kills on a 6-1 run as the Captains took over the lead at 7-5.
Loudoun County limited Woodgrove to just 6 kills in the first set, but the Wolverines were able to keep it close thanks to a slew of Captain errors and a couple kills from junior outside hitter Amelia Zinn (6 kills, 4 digs). Through the middle stretch, the teams tied at every point from 8 to 13, but the Captains gained the slight edge as senior outside hitter Charlotte Arrington (23 digs, 21 kills, 1 ace) got involved in the action offensively with a set-high 7 kills, as well as defensively with a set-high 9 digs.
A kill and 2 blocks from Mercker gave the Wolverines their first lead since the opening frames at 19-18, but Loudoun County senior middle hitter Sydney Miller (10 kills, 3 aces, 1 assist) responded with a kill and then went to the service line to rattle off 3 straight aces as the Captains reclaimed the advantage.
Woodgrove fought back behind a couple blocks from junior middle hitter Skyla Ferguson (4 blocks, 2 kills, 1 dig) on a 5-1 run to give the Wolverines set point at 24-23. But after a long rally, a kill from Loudoun County junior middle hitter Alexa Dekenipp (5 kills, 2 digs) extended the set to extra points. Then junior setter Morgan Karle (32 assists, 5 digs, 2 aces) found Arrington for 3 kills over 4 points for the 27-25 Captains win.
Loudoun County senior setter Claire Popish (27 assists, 10 digs, 2 aces) assisted on kills to four different hitters on a 5-1 Captain run to open the second set. The Wolverines received offensive contributions from Mercker, Zinn, and freshman outside hitter Avery Rogers (17 digs, 3 kills, 2 aces) and defense via a couple big blocks from Mercker and Ferguson to come back and tie it at 8-8.
A 7-2 Loudoun County run featuring 3 kills from Miller and aces from Popish and senior libero Isa DeWan (19 digs, 2 aces, 1 assist) gave the Captains their largest lead of the set at 16-11. But five unanswered Woodgrove points—including 2 kills from senior right side hitter Audrey Hendrickson and 2 aces from sophomore setter Charlie Hoelker—erased the lead. Senior libero Bella Gannon (16 digs, 2 aces, 1 assist) and Rogers anchored the defense to keep rallies alive and give the Wolverines additional opportunities.
The Captains benefitted from a handful of Wolverine errors on a 6-2 run in which Loudoun County sophomore outside hitter Elise Silvey (9 kills, 2 digs, 1 block) got involved in the action with a kill. But Woodgrove senior setter Morgan Sher (12 assists, 11 digs, 3 aces, 1 kill) reentered the game and applied the service pressure with an ace on another 5-0 run where Mercker recorded 2 blocks, and the Wolverines took their first lead of the second set at 23-22.
After a Silvey kill tied it at 23-23, Sher connected with Mercker for a kill and set point. But once again, the Captains relied on Arrington to get them out of the jam, as a kill from the senior leader neutralized the threat at 24-24, and then another Arrington kill a few plays later gave Loudoun County set point at 27-26. Silvey finished it with her third kill of the set to give the Captains the 28-26 victory and the 2-0 advantage.
Woodgrove started the third set strong, taking an 11-5 lead as four different players recorded kills and Ferguson and Mercker each recorded a block. Arrington stopped the bleeding with a kill during a 4-0 Captain run, but Mercker brought the Wolverines right back in it with a couple kills and a block to bring the score to 15-10. Rogers, Gannon, and Howard each contributed 4 digs in the third set, while DeWan chipped in with 6 as the defense on both sides fought to extend plays.
Seekford stepped up with 3 kills during a 7-1 Loudoun County run to give the Captains their first lead of the set at 17-16. But the success was short-lived as Woodgrove junior setter Hailey Howard (9 digs, 6 assists) found Ferguson and Zinn for kills and Rogers applied the service pressure during a 5-0 run.
Karle connected with Arrington and Silvey for a handful of kills as Loudoun County countered with a 6-0 run to reclaim the lead at 23-21. But a few late errors hurt the Captains, and back-to-back Sher aces ended the set, 24-26, and extended the match.
Despite dropping the third set, the Captains came out on fire in the fourth, jumping out to a 10-1 lead behind 3 kills from Miller, which forced Woodgrove to burn a timeout early.
Although the Wolverines fought to get back in it behind the defensive effort of Sher and Rogers, they struggled to find their offensive rhythm as the Loudoun County defense stepped up too and limited them to just 3 kills in the set. Led by the 4 kills apiece from Seekford and Arrington, the Captains cruised to a 25-14 victory to claim the 3-1 match win.
Both teams will wrap up the regular season with their final Catoctin District matchups on October 29. Loudoun County (5-0, 17-5)—who has already secured the top spot in the district—will travel to Park View, while Woodgrove (2-3, 12-8) will host Broad Run in a battle for the No. 2 seed in the district.