Warriorettes get the last word in five-set battle

For a moment Monday night, it looked like the White County Warriorettes had figured Wilson Central out.

Then the Wildcats made them do it all over again.

Wilson Central grabbed the early advantage inside Roy Sewell Gymnasium with a 25-18 win in the first set, but White County didn’t let that one linger. The Warriorettes answered with a 25-21 win in the second and then completely took over in the third, rolling to a 25-8 victory that put them one set away from closing out the night.

But apparently 25-18 was Wilson Central’s number. The Wildcats flipped the opening set right back onto White County in the fourth, winning by that exact same score and suddenly turning a match the Warriorettes had taken control of into a race to 15.

White County won that race, fighting through the deciding set for a 15-12 victory and a 3-2 win over the Wildcats.

Alli Beth Stebbing led White County with 11 kills to go along with two aces and six digs, while Ashlyn Selby added nine kills, eight digs, and a block. Mallori Swindell filled up the stat sheet with 17 assists, seven kills, and three aces, while Rhaleigh Cloyd added 16 assists, two digs, and an ace.

White County also got plenty of production elsewhere. Maddison Henry finished with six blocks and three kills, while Lanie Naaktgeboern had four kills and two blocks. Katelyn Howard served up a team-high seven aces and added two digs, while Miah Jo Swindell finished with three aces and a team-high 13 digs.

The win moves White County to 7-9 overall and 5-4 in district play. With eight games remaining on the regular-season schedule, four will count toward the district standings.

There won’t be much time to enjoy Monday’s five-set win. White County travels to LaVergne Tuesday for a non-district match before returning home Thursday to host Cookeville in district play. The Warriorettes will then head to Cannon County Saturday for the Southern Slam tournament to close out a busy week.