Opening up their Chestatee Tournament play, the Lady Indians quickly notched a win over Stephens County in straight sets. After a 3-set loss to North Hall, the girls rebounded with a win over Hart County. TFS then had another hard-fought, 3-set loss to Cherokee Bluff.
In the match against Stephens, TFS won 25-18, 25-16.
“Much better team organization on the court than our first showing,” says coach Matt Heyl. “Chesney [Tanksley] and Margalida [Amengual Sanchez] ran a great offense with some precision setting, some of the best setting I’ve ever seen at Tallulah.”
Serving was strong for TFS, led by Shelby Whisnant, who had several aces. Ca’Rin Swinton was, as Heyl stated, a ‘beast’ at the net denying several overpasses by Stephens. Amengual Sanchez put some points on the board.
“A great all-around effort,” adds Heyl.
Against North Hall, TFS dropped the opening set 19-25 before claiming the second, 25-19. In the third set, a 9-15 score gave the win to North Hall.
“We fought hard and I saw our best, grittiest play of the year,” adds Heyl. “The girls were determined to not let the ball hit the floor. We had some great digs off of North Hall’s spikes. We just couldn’t produce quite enough offense to secure the third set.”
A rebound win was in order against Hart County. TFS won 25-22, 25-15 in straight sets. The first set started off a bit slow.
“We had a 2-hour break and it showed,” says Heyl. “But we never let down, and even though some not-so-pretty play, we pulled out the first set.”
Tanksley and Amengual Sanchez again performed very well setting and serving. Laura Ruiz Rendon passed well, and Jace Ibemere racked up some key kills in just a couple of rotations. The set went back-and-forth til 10-10 until Becca Heyl ran off 11 straight serves, with seven going for aces to clinch the match.
In the Cherokee Bluff match, TFS lost 18-25, 25-19, 10-15.
“We needed that win to be the top-2 in our pool and make it to the semifinal,” adds Heyl. We played down in the first set, but bounced back with some good energy in the second.
Lily Smith, Ruiz Rendon, Amengual Sanchez, and Becca Heyl had some good kills. Tanksley again set well, and Whisnant’s serve pulled Tallulah Falls within three in the final set.
The Lady Indians are now 3-3 overall on the season.
TFS W 2-1 vs Stephens County: 25-18, 25-16
TFS L 1-2 vs North Hall: 19-25, 25-19, 9-15
TFS W 2-0 vs Hart County: 25-22, 25-15
TFS L 1-2 vs Cherokee Bluff: 18-25, 25-19, 10-15
