Lady Jackets Survive Oakdale Challenge

By Terry Futrell
August 16, 2018

That old adage about there being strength in numbers proved to be true this evening when the Coalfield Lady Jackets volleyball team came to Oakdale. With 18 players compared to Oakdale’s eight, the Lady Jackets looked like an invading army. In spite of the mismatch in numbers, the Lady Eagles gave Coalfield all they could want, and then some – at least for the first three games.

In Game 1, team stats were almost equal for both teams, except for Oakdale making four more errors than the Lady Jackets. The Lady Eagles matched the Lady Jackets point-for-point until Coalfield took a 17-15 lead. It was then all Coalfield as the Lady Jackets cruised to a 25-18 victory.

The Lady Eagles came roaring back in Game 2, attacking the net five times more than the Lady Jackets. The Lady Eagles showed significant improvement in serving the ball, experiencing only one service error in the game. Despite scoring five service aces, the Lady Jackets fell behind at 20-19 and could never catch up. The Lady Eagles won Game 2 by a score of 25-22.

Game 3 proved to be another barn-burner that went down to the wire. The Lady Jackets were able to overcome several errors in ball handling by scoring seven service aces and took a 21-10 lead. The Lady Eagles refused to give up and scored ten straight points thanks to excellent serving by Amelia Clark. But, the Lady Eagles valiant comeback effort could not overcome the huge deficit and Coalfield eked out a 25-23 victory in Game 3.

It was in Game 4 that the strength of Coalfield’s numbers took its toll on the Lady Eagles. With a roster of three complete teams, the Lady Jackets were able to substitute freely in the hot and humid Oakdale gymnasium. With only eight players on their roster, the Lady Eagles got very little rest in the series of four games that lasted almost two hours. As Coalfield stepped up their attack, the now sluggish Lady Eagles experienced several unforced errors as a result of poor communication. At the same time, Coalfield’s Breanna Rich put on a serving exhibition, scoring seven straight points, including several aces, to bury the Lady Eagles. Coalfield won Game 4 by a score of 25-10 and the overall match by 3 games to 1.

It was an action-packed evening of volleyball between two very hard-working and much improved teams. But both teams have room for improvement, as there was only one block at the net during the four games. The Lady Jackets proved they are a force to be reckoned with, while the Lady Eagles showed they can compete with anyone despite their small numbers. The remainder of the 2018 season promises to be exciting for fans of both teams.

Game Summary

	Oakdale	Coalfield
Game 1	18	25
Game 2	25	22
Game 3	23	25
Game 4	10	25
Match	1	3