Natalie Payne, pictured in a previous home game, had another big night for WCHS Thursday at Shelbyville.
Warren County couldn't have scripted a much better finish to the regular season.
There were plenty of twists and turns along the way, but the Lady Pioneers will enter the postseason playing their best volleyball of the year.
Warren County finished off its regular-season slate Thursday night in Shelbyville, overcoming a slow start before rolling to a 26-24, 25-13, 25-14 sweep. The victory improved the Lady Pioneers to 14-12 overall and extended their winning streak to four matches, all coming in straight sets.
“We definitely started a little slower than we would like, but the girls battled back to get the first set and never looked back,” coach Erin Blalock said. “The second and third set showed much more energy in our game and they played more like our style of volleyball.”
Finding a way to win the opener may have been as encouraging as the dominance that followed.
Warren County has spent much of the season learning how costly a handful of points can be. Close sets slipped away during a midseason stretch where the Lady Pioneers lost six of seven matches and fell to 6-10 overall.
Thursday, Warren County found itself in another fight and finished. The Lady Pioneers survived 26-24, then left little doubt the rest of the way. Warren County overwhelmed Shelbyville in the second set and finished the sweep with a strong showing in the third.
Aubrey Oleksik continued her strong finish to her senior season with a team-high seven kills and five digs. Sloan Youngblood added six kills and four digs, while Caroline Boyd continued making an impact since returning from injury with five kills.
Natalie Payne was everywhere at the net. The junior finished with four kills and a team-high five blocks while adding two aces and three digs. Brynlee Chisam and Elliana Heintz added four kills apiece, while Chisam also had a block.
Reese Reinitz led the Lady Pioneers with nine assists and added two kills, three digs and an ace. Maelee Turner finished with six assists and five digs, while Ali Young anchored the back row with a team-high seven digs.
It was another balanced performance from a team that has increasingly found different ways to win.
The turnaround started with a five-set victory at LaVergne when Warren County finally finished a close match by dominating the deciding set. The Lady Pioneers followed by sweeping Van Buren County before knocking off defending district champion Cookeville in five sets.
There have been a few bumps since, but Warren County has responded with its best sustained stretch of the season.
The Lady Pioneers closed District 7-AAA play by sweeping White County, then rolled through DeKalb County on the road. Warren County survived two tight sets against Cannon County on Senior Night before dominating the third, then did much the same Thursday in Shelbyville.
“The season has certainly had highs and lows but we hope we have learned from all of those, and we go into the postseason playing our best,” Blalock said.
The Lady Pioneers finished 7-7 in District 7-AAA, meaning there will be no surprises when postseason play begins. Warren County has already seen every district opponent twice, beating LaVergne and Smyrna twice while splitting with Wilson Central, Cookeville and White County.
“We know what it will take to be successful against the district teams because we get all too familiar with them throughout the season,” Blalock said. “It will come down to execution of the little things. When little things are put together, big plays can and will happen.”
The tournament will be played at Smyrna High School Oct. 5-6 and the Lady Pioneers are scheduled to play Monday at 4 p.m. against the winner of Sparta and LaVergne. A full JV and varsity bracket can be found below.
