THE SPORTS DESK
Volleyball Notepad: Knights set to entertain Cougars
The Spotsylvania volleyball team comes into tonight’s Battlefield District showdown with first-place Courtland with high hopes.
This will be the second meeting between the Knights and Cougars, and a Spotsylvania win would leave the teams in a tie atop the district standings.
In the first meeting on Sept. 13, Courtland edged the Knights, 24–26, 25–17, 25–19, 24–26, 16–14, on its home court and Spotsylvania coach Lou Wondree said the boisterous crowd may have affected his players.
“We’re looking forward to [tonight],” he said. “I’m hoping the home crowd on our side will help push us over the top.”
Along with the tight earlier match with Courtland (11–5, 7–0), the Knights (6–6, 6–1) have also jumped another hurdle this season.
Last Monday, Spotsylvania beat Chancellor, 25–23, 25–20, 25–23, the Knights’ first ever win over the Chargers, a perennial district front-runner.
Wondree said that victory has also helped his players’ psyches somewhat.
“It does a little bit,” he said. “It’s always nice to beat somebody you’ve never beaten before.”
Wondree also said his players didn’t want to leave Monday’s practice, which he hopes is a good sign.
“If we can beat Courtland [tonight], that’s going to be something big in all of the girls, and my own, careers,” Wondree said. “It will mean we really have a shot at winning the district, which is something we’ve never done before.”
—Tom Leiss
