By Dylan Branscome
The Davidson-Davie STORM defeated the Richard Bland Statesmen in four sets, 20-25, 25-20, 26-24, 26-24, and the Louisburg Hurricanes in three sets, 25-17, 25-21, 25-14, on Saturday in a tri-match at Brinkley Gym. Davidson is now 22-5 overall this season and 8-2 in Region 10 play.
The stat leaders in the game against Richard Bland were Carly Edwards (two aces, 21 kills) Ciara Major (10 kills) and Anna Edwards (six kills, nine blocks). Chloe Painter had 43 assists, and Karrington Batten had six kills.
This game was extremely competitive in all four sets. After losing the first, the STORM responded quickly with a 5-0 start backed behind two blocks from Cameron Ostle and Batten. The set continued to be exciting to watch, especially when Carly Edwards was dominating, getting back-to-back kills to force another timeout and give Davidson an 18-13 lead. Eventually, Painter set the ball to Anna Edwards for the set win. Carly Edwards had four kills, alongside Batten, and Major had three.
The third set started the same way for the STORM with another 5-0 run. But eventually, this set ended up being very back-and-forth. Carly Edwards had her most impressive set of the game with nine kills in this set alone. A block-kill from Painter and Anna Edwards put Davidson in front 23-22, and a huge Batten block-kill put them up 25-24, and the STORM ended up walking away with another set win.
The fourth set somehow upended the other three when it came to which was the most entertaining. Richard Bland went on a huge run to get the STORM down 10-20, but the STORM were not finished. They ended up going on a 12-2 run to tie the set at 22 a piece. Faith Powell then served an ace to grab the lead, and right after the Statesmen tied the set at 24, Ostle grabbed a kill to back up 25-24, and the STORM completed the comeback on a 16-4 run to win the set and the match. Carly Edwards had two aces and five kills, while Major and Ostle each had three.
The next game against Louisburg was a sweep for the STORM. Each set showed their offensive prowess against the Hurricanes. The stat leaders were Anna Edwards (13 kills), Carly Edwards (two aces, 10 kills), and Chloe Painter (two kills, 32 assists). Ciara Major also had five kills.
All three sets were mostly the STORM with the lead and never looking back. The first set had Anna and Carly Edwards getting four kills and Major getting three on an eight point victory. The second set had Anna Edwards getting six of her 13 kills in this set alone and Kaitlyn McCoy grabbing two aces. The third set had Anna Edwards and Ciara Major grabbing three kills each.
“We are feeling energized and focused,” head coach Emma Carter said post-game when asked about how the team is feeling about the last couple of weeks in the season starting. “We know that we are not done yet and are focused on this next stretch of opponents and getting ready for the post-season.”
The Davidson-Davie STORM return to action on Wednesday, Oct. 15 against the Patrick & Henry Patriots in Martinsville, Virginia at 6:00 P.M. EST.