The Press-Dispatch
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D-10 Fall Sports Preview Wednesday, August 15, 2018 The Press-Dispatch VOLLEYBALL Pictured above is the 2018-19 Pike Central High School volleyball team. They are, first row, left to right: Alexis Englert, Addie Johnson, Kaila Lamey, Audrey Keepes and Aubrie Dawson. Second row: Manager Alex Traylor, Becca Crow, Kenzie Dunn, Kylie Dawson, Taylor Lamey, Kylee Shoultz and Alyssa Jenkins. Third row: Assistant Coach Tina Vinnedge, Lily Frederick-Rice, Emma Russell, Karsyn Pipes, Kenzie Powell and Head Coach Brandi Chestnut. Ed Cahill photo CHARGE! Leave the repairs to us! DOUBLE J COLLISION CENTER 350 W. Main, Petersburg (Hwy. 57, south of Petersburg) Good Luck to all Pike Central Teams Open Mon.-Fri. 8-5 • 812-354-9670 GO CHARGERS! Willis & Company, p.C. CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS & CONSULTANTS Gregory K. Willis, CPA Carla D. Willis, CPA 705 MAIN ST., PETERSBURG (812) 354-6274 FAx: (812) 354-6974 Members American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Indiana CPA Society Lady Chargers aim to serve up winning record, sectional title By Ed Cahill Press-Dispatch Sports sports@pressdispatch.net The Pike Central High School volleyball team, which opened the 2018 season against Vincennes Lincoln on Tuesday, Aug. 14, lost four seniors – middle blocker Brook Nalley, setter Shelbi Pipes, defensive specialist Peyton Sor- gius and libero Morgan Whann – from last year's squad that went 9 - 20 overall and tied for sixth in the Pocket Athletic Conference at 2-6. Nalley, one of six all around play- ers who received honorable men- tion All-PAC accolades last sea- son, led the Lady Chargers with 138 kills – including a season-high 10 in a three-set regular-season loss to North Posey – and 50 ace serves and was second on the team in blocks with 29.5, while Whann had a team-high 435 digs. Pipes was second on the team in set-assists with 157 and 49 ace serves. Sorgius was second on the team with 280 digs. However, first-year Pike Cen- tral head coach Brandi Chest- nut has six returning seniors – Becca Crow, Kylie Dawson, Ken- zie Dunn, Alyssa Jenkins, Taylor Lamey and Kylee Schoultz. Last season, Crow dished out a team-high 233 set-assists and was second in ace serves (42); Jen- kins had a team-high 38.5 blocks and was third in kills (99); Taylor Lamey was second in kills (129) and third in blocks (10); Kylie Dawson was fourth in kills (73); and Dunn was fifth in digs (82) and tied for fifth in ace serves (11). A seventh senior – Alex Traylor, who was third in digs (180) and tied for fourth in ace serves (21) as a defensive specialist last season – will serve as a student-manager af- ter being sidelined by injury. Joining the varsity team for the first time are juniors Aubrie Daw- son, Alexis Englert, Lily Freder- ick-Rice, Audrey Keepes, Karsyn Pipes and Emma Russell, and sophomores Addie Johnson, Kai- la Lamey and Kenzie Powell. Chestnut – who succeeds Tonya Walton as the Lady Chargers' head coach –previously served as head coach for the Pike Central Mid- dle School eighth grade volleyball team since 2013. For Chestnut, the transition from middle school to high school has, thus far, gone smoothly. "We've already formed a bond in eighth grade, and we've contin- ued it," said Chestnut, who grad- uated from Pike Central High School in 2007. "They've come to us – me and (volunteer assistant coach) Lexie (Shoultz) freshman year, sophomore year, just to talk, or we'd come down and root for them when we could, and just kind of kept it going." "They're a very strong group of girls," Chestnut said of the team's seniors. "They were strong as eighth graders. And just seeing them progress, they've become leaders of the team. They help lead and get the other girls in line with what we need to do, what we need to accomplish, and that's exactly what we need from them. I need them to be my ears." Chestnut noted that her big- gest goal as the eighth grade vol- leyball coach was to prepare the players for their freshman year in high school. "I was just trying to get them in- to learning the rotation, learning how to play a position, just try- ing to get them into growing their knowledge of volleyball," Chestnut said. "That way, Tonya didn't have that much to do in their freshman year. Since I played for her my se- nior year, I just kind of knew what she wanted and what she expected and that's exactly what I instilled into them." "I still expect the same things," Chestnut added. "I expect nothing but great things from them." Crow, Chestnut said, will return as the Lady Chargers' primary set- ter. "I expect nothing but great things from her," Chestnut said of Crow, who had a season-high 21 set-assists in a five-set regu- lar season win over Washington. "She does a very good job of lead- ing the team. She's a key compo- nent to the team. You can tell when she's not there – they have an off day. That's typical of a team that's used to one setter. She will defi- nitely be missed next year, but we're trying to shape people to taking her spot, too." "She's a great server, and she's great on defense," Chestnut add- ed. "She's just a good all-around player." Jenkins, who had a season-high 6.5 blocks in a three-set regular- season win over Southridge, will return as a middle blocker. "She's another great leader of the team," Chestnut said. "She's working more on some quick sets and her serving, blocking. I'm try- ing to get her to be the big girl in the middle that we need her to be." Taylor Lamey, who recorded a season-high 11 kills in a five-set regular-season loss to Shoals, will serve as an outside hitter, Chest- nut said. "She has a very strong hit, and is really good at blocking," Chest- nut said of Taylor Lamey, who al- so saw varsity action during her freshman and sophomore years. "We're working on her back row play right now, so we're expecting some changes for her." "You can see the high level of play she helps bring to the court," Chestnut added. "She just helps in- tensify everything around her and everything with the team." Kylie Dawson, who had a sea- son-high nine kills in a four-set regular-season win over Forest Park, will also serve as an outside hitter. "She saw a lot of action last year," Chestnut said. "We expect her to continue. She's really good with the short play as well as a good hard hit/kill. So we want her to continue with that." Shoultz, who saw limited action on the varsity last season, will tran- sition to the right side this year, Chestnut said. "She has great hands as well, so if Becca would get the first hit, she can step in and set up a hitter," Chestnut said. "She'll transition to left side, too, but we're looking mainly on the right side for her." Dunn, who had a season-high 11 digs in a five-set regular-sea- son win over Princeton, will serve as a defensive specialist. "She's going to see a lot of back row play this year," Chestnut said. "We're working on jump serving. She's a real go-getter. She will dive after the ball. She'll sacrifice anything for that ball, and that's exactly what we need." And while Traylor – who had a season-high 19 digs in a five-set regular-season win over Washing- ton as a defensive specialist – won't be on the court this year, she will fill a key role on the bench, Chest- nut said. "She's going to be our stat keep- er, because me and (assistant coach) Tina ( Vinnedge) are too slow on the stats," Chestnut said. "And the girls enjoy having her here and I think she enjoys it, just to be around it. Once you're an ath- lete, you're going to be around it for the rest of your life. I just wish she was healthy." Aubrie Dawson – Kylie's cousin – will be a left-side hitter. "I plan to have her see quite a bit of action, whether it be subbing in for somebody or starting a set," Chestnut said. "Her hitting has come a long ways, and we need to utilize her. She'll be another key component." Karsyn Pipes (Shelbi's sister) will see action as a right-side hit- ter. "Karsyn's got a good hard hit," Chestnut said. "She has a good serve. She has good hands. She was a setter for me back in mid- dle school, so I just look for her to pick up where somebody leaves off or start a set." Keepes, meanwhile, will be a middle blocker. "She has a really good hard hit," Chestnut said. "She has a really good cross-court shot. Her serve is really hard to receive sometimes. She has been really good at block- ing, and playing back row as well. You don't see that with a lot of mid- dles, but she's pretty versatile. So we look to use her quite a bit, too." Englert will also see action as a middle blocker, Chestnut said. "Right now, we're working on her hitting, getting the quick sets down, and blocking," Chestnut said. Frederick-Rice, meanwhile will be a right-side hitter. "She does really good when you sub her in or when you start her," Chestnut said. Russell will serve as a back-up setter. "Or she'll come in as the oppo- site, and be an attacker," Chestnut said. "We're working on her jump serve. We're really trying to switch things up this year, more of a ver- satile attack instead of flat-foot- ed, because it gets them into the court quicker. And plus her being lefthanded, she can give us some really wicked spin on it." Kaila Lamey will be the libero, Chestnut said. "She's Taylor's sister," Chestnut noted. "She has played a couple of years of club ball, and that real- ly shows. She's very quick on the back row, which is what we need. She reads the ball really well, and we need somebody to grow into that spot for the next few seasons. So that's my plan for her." Chestnut said that Powell will come off the bench as either a set- ter or as an opposite hitter. "She played in the Summer Spike for us and she did a real- ly good job picking up the tips over the blockers," Chestnut said. "She's got a good hit, too, and a good serve." "We're just trying to utilize ev- erybody that we can, people that we feel like will pick up where somebody else left off, and not re- ally have to worry about a transi- tion point or two," Chestnut add- ed. "Because we can't afford to lose points." Rounding out the varsity squad is Johnson. "She might be for back row, she may be for front row – who real- ly knows? " Chestnut said. "Right now, the girls are just making it really hard to pinpoint a lineup, which is really good, because who- ever I sub in, they should have no problem picking up the slack." One of the Lady Chargers' strengths this season, according to Chestnut, will be its versatility. "I mean, it doesn't matter who you put in – you're going to get effort, you're going to get hard work," Chestnut said. "I feel like we're going to get what we want See SERVE on D-11 They're a very strong group of girls. They were strong as eighth graders. And just seeing them progress, they've become leaders of the team. They help lead and get the other girls in line with what we need to do, what we need to ac- complish, and that's exactly what we need from them. I need them to be my ears." -Coach Brandi Chestnut