Lafayette Girls Play with Grace and Floor Burns in Loss to Calvary

Chris Fernsler

Sports Editor

Coach Katie Firth and her Lafayette Christian girls volleyball team is growing and maturing from set-to-set and match-to match.

The Lady Cougars are coached to the finer points and all-out hustle. Lafayette Christian might not be the best team in the state, but they are the hardest working.

By the way, LCS has some volleyball skills. And the Lady Cougars put them to good use as they ran themselves ragged in a 3-0 loss to region power Calvary Christian on Tuesday night in the Cougar gymnasium.

The Lady Knights, a valid state championship contender, did not have an easy time of it against the Lafayette Christian girls. The Lady Cougars played like they belonged on the same court with the region’s first place team.

“We got up and played. We competed,” said Firth.

And, no, she was not surprised her LCS girls went nose-to-nose with the talent-rich Lady Knights. Lafayette Christian held the lead at some volleyball juncture in all three sets of the match.

The Lady Cougars led twice in the first set, for instance. Lafayette Christian scored the first point of the opening set behind a Hana Stevens kill. The Lady Cougars also led at 3-2 behind a Caraline Jackson service ace.

Lafayette Chrisitan can serve it and play the game. The Lady Cougars did that as their confidence rose. In time, Lafayette Christian got a kill from senior middle blocker Savannah Bryant.

But Calvary Christian got their wakeup call and went on a 10-3 run to take a 12-6 lead. The Lady Knights would follow that up with several service aces and a kill from senior outside hitter Alyssa Scoggins.

Calvary Christian galloped to a 23-11 lead, and the Lady Knights kept it going as they nailed down the first set, 25-13.

“We pulled through, and we made some big serves,” said the 5-foot-6 Scoggins.

Lafayette Christian made the Lady Knights earn every point, however. The Lady Cougars played with a half-grin and some floor burns. Lafayette Christian was there to stay.

“We want to win, and we have more to prove,” said Lady Cougar junior outside hitter Katie Killmer.

And what did Lafayette Christian prove in the second set?

The Lady Cougars made it clear that they will back down from no team, including the Calvary Lady Knights from Columbus. Calvary Christian won the second set, 25-14, but there were some nervewracking moments for the Lady Knights.

Lafayette Christian took the first lead of the second set. The Lady Cougars continued to battle. The LCS girls also had the second set tied up a few points down the road.

But that was before Calvary Christian took a 9-3 lead behind a service ace from Scoggins. The Lady Knights also took advantage of some razor sharp serving from senior Carleigh King.

Lafayette Christian kept competing, however. The Lady Cougars did not check out early. They rallied behind a Savannah Bryant service ace and a Hana Stevens kill.

The Lady Knights followed with a 9-3 run. Alyssa Scoggins also served up two aces for Calvary Christian. The Lady Knights stretched their lead to 21-12, and they went on to win the second set by 11 points.

Lafayette Christian still finished with a flurry in the third and final set of the night. The Lady Cougars dropped the set, 19-25, but they had some fun along the way.

“We are trying to make it to state,” said Lafayette Christian senior outside hitter Rachel Anderson.

So they are. The Lady Cougars scored quickly for a 1-0 lead behind a service ace from senior Stella Llorens. The third set would go on and have six ties.

One of those came with back-to-back kills from Lafayette Christian’s Savannah Bryant. The Lady Cougars tied the set at 8-8. Bryant would add a service ace just minutes later.

Lafayette Christian even took a 13-11 lead in the third set behind some toasty Savannah Bryant serves. The Lady Knights answered with a two-point swing, as they tied the set at 13-13.

Carleigh King contributed a service ace for Calvary Christian. The third set was later deadlocked at 16-16, and that included a kill from Calvary Christian’s Alyssa Scoggins.

The ball then bounced in the direction of the Lady Cougars. They took a 17-16 lead behind a kill from junior middle blocker Hana Stevens. The Lady Knights came back with some volleyball closure, however, as they went on a 9-2 run to clinch the set and the match.

“We overcame some adversity, and we found a way. We’ve got some senior leadership. We grind every day,” said coach Sean Burns of Calvary Christian (8-2 overall, 4-1 in the region).

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