Lady Ducks VB grinds past Caldwell
CALDWELL — The Taylor High School varsity volleyball team pulled off its most important win of the season to date on Tuesday night as the Lady Ducks picked up a gritty victory on the road against Caldwell High School, who entered the night with a 4-0 record in District 22-4A play. The Lady Ducks fought hard and came away on top in yet another five-set thriller: 24-26, 25-12, 25-18, 19-25 and won 15-4 in a dominant fifth set to seal the deal.
Taylor had three players on the night with double-digit kills: senior Hannah Wamble with 18, junior Haley Harms with 18 and senior Ansley Reed with 11. Wamble also had 13 digs and Harms had nine of her own in the win over the Lady Hornets.
“Hannah, Haley and Ansley have been an amazing power trio for us and with two of those being in our outside position, it has helped us out a lot offensively with out-of-system plays,” first-year head coach Rylee Davis said. “Then we have Ansley in the middle who has found a way to be an option even in less-thanideal balls. Being able to move them around and find ways to score when we’re in trouble has helped us come back from some rather large deficits.”
Lady Ducks senior Camryn Nunamaker was all over the court for Taylor as she finished the match with a whopping 24 assists and 24 digs, while sophomore Peyton Wamble had another great outing with 18 assists and seven digs.
“Cam and Peyton have to do a lot of behind-the-scenes work to make this team run the way it does,” Davis said. “As a setter, you’re involved in every play, and it takes some serious confidence to be able to bounce back point after point. They’ve grown so much mentally, as well as strategy-wise this season on what our best options are and how to utilize them.”
Defensively, the Lady Ducks were again led by sophomore Makenna Watson and senior Ri’Queleigh Holmes-Grant. Watson had an eye-opening 38 serves received and 18 digs, while Holmes-Grant added 13 serves received and five digs. Davis was especially impressed with her blocking duo of sophomore Elena Martinez and junior Katelyn Aderhold, who returned after she missed a few matches due to injury.
“Katelyn was able to come back after a few games off and her job when she went was to put a block up,” Davis said. “Defensively, we just had to shut their hitters down to give us time to breathe. As soon as she went in, she was determined to find her role again and she put up block after block. Having her and Elena as a blocking duo for other teams outsides was a game-changer at Caldwell.”
Taylor High School varsity volleyball sophomore Elena Martinez (6) and senior Ansley Reed (10) go up to block a shot at the net on Sept. 19 during the Lady Ducks’ home match vs. Jarrell High School. Photo by Larry Pelchat
After the Lady Ducks host Smithville High School on Friday night, Taylor (22-12 overall record and a 4-1 mark in district play) will hit the road at 6 p.m. on Tuesday to take on Austin Achieve.
