MORRISTOWN, TN — There was no quit from the Walters State Lady Senators in the Region VII Championship game against Roane State at Z'Buda Gymnasium Saturday afternoon.
Unfortunately, the hustle and grit only took the Lady Senators so far as Roane State got the best of them with the victory of 3-1, (25-20, 19-25, 25-20, 25-21).
The loss ends Walters State's season as they finish just shy of a second straight NJCAA Tournament appearance.
"I'm really proud of this group," Walters State coach Megan Blaylock said. "This has been a challenging season dealing with COVID again but I give all the credit to these girls for what they have done this year."
Freshman Jordan Moore led the way for Walters State with her 12 kills and three blocks. Sophomore Mackenzie Sweigart followed Moore with seven kills and three blocks of her own.
Like every other match against Roane State this season, this one was also intense.
"This was even more intense," Blaylock said. "Roane State just played better than us, truthfully. We were prepared and did what we were supposed to do."
Roane State only trailed at the very beginning of the first set but after taking a 6-5 advantage, it never looked back. Walters State pulled within two points, trailing only 14-12, but Roane State continued to feed off its momentum to take it to a 25-20 win for a 1-0 lead.
The Lady Senators tied the game up at 1-1 after stealing the second set as hustle plays to keep balls alive was the key factor.
A strong start in set two began with sophomore Halyn Long's back-to-back saving digs that led to points for the Lady Senators, eventually grabbing a 7-2 lead.
Roane State cut its deficit to just two points shortly after; however, Walters State's hustle continued through the set and led them to a 25-19 victory to tie the match.
"Everyone started playing better after I emphasized to them that we had to pull ourselves out of the hole," Blaylock said.
Sets three and four belonged to Roane State as it never trailed in the third set and came from behind to take the fourth and final set.
Walters State began the fourth set with a 7-0 lead and even upped its advantage to 12-5, forcing Roane State to call a timeout.
The words in the huddle struck a fire for Roane State, though as it outscored the Lady Senators 19-9 the rest of the set to capture the 25-21 victory to seal the deal.
The Lady Senators finished the season with a 14-10 overall record. The program will say goodbye to its sophomores Halyn Long, Mercedes Collins, Lydia Buchanan, Parker Hurd, Raenah Barton, Morgan Blakely, Ashton Vance and Sweigart.
"I can't say enough about those sophomores," Blaylock said. "We have never played in the spring and turned around and played in the fall before. I was very impressed with them and how committed they have been."
Rob Harvey
Walters State Community College
Sports Information Director
Cell: (423) 779-8880
Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu
Website: www.ws.edu/athletics