West Mecklenburg High's young Hawks learned a valuable lesson in closing out a volleyball match.

West Mecklenburg rallied from 11 points down during the third game Tuesday to sweep visiting Waddell in a Queen City 3A/4A match. The Hawks (3-7, 1-1) trailed 23-12 in the third and had trouble getting the ball in play before a stunning 14-1 blitz to seal the result.

"Every match we're learning new things and we are putting the pieces together," West Mecklenburg coach Chris Cooper said. "Every match is a learning experience for myself and the girls. This will definitely jump-start us."

"We get better and better every game," said sophomore middle hitter Emily Lacey, who came off the bench to solidify the Hawks' passing, especially during a 25-21 first-game rally. "If we keep on doing like we did tonight, we can have a great season."

West Mecklenburg, which has eight underclassmen on its 11-player squad, won the first two games behind a strong service-oriented attack. Lacey's passing set up the Hawks' best hitters, especially Sha'Tara Steele on the outside.

"I was happy I was going in," Lacey said. "I was ready to pick the game up and help the team along, get some good sets so we could get some good spikes. It was a great feeling."

Waddell threatened during the third game, getting within a point of forcing a fourth. West Mecklenburg, however, didn't concede, even with the Hawks down 24-18.

"I told them to just serve the ball in play, don't try to place it anywhere," Cooper said. "Just make sure you serve it inbounds and we'll try to make them make mistakes."

The Hawks, behind the serving of Tianna Adams and Asante Hazzie, responded by cutting into Waddell's advantage. Half of West Mecklenburg's final eight points were the result of Hazzie aces, and the Raiders struggled to keep pace when they got to the ball.

Cooper "was making sure we got (serves) in and keep it in play so we could get the ball back and play as we would normally," Lacey said.