‘We all feel a weight is off our shoulders.’ Ardrey Kell reaches state volleyball final
Zoe Bell is headed back to the state volleyball championship match with a team that she says worked very hard to get there.
“We had a lot of players coming back – a lot of talent,” Bell said Tuesday night, after the Ardrey Kell team she coaches beat visiting Watauga 3-1 in the 4A West Regional finals.
“A lot of people high had expectations of this team, because they are so talented,” she added. “These players put in a lot of work to do this.
“I think we all feel a bit of weight is off our shoulders now.”
The Knights (31-1) will face Cary’s Green Level High (26-1) at 4:30 p.m. Saturday for the 4A state title. The match will be played at Reynolds Coliseum on the N.C. State campus in Raleigh.
Getting to the state finals is nothing new for Bell.
Between 1989 and 2008, she took Providence to four state championships. She moved to Ardrey Kell in 2009, and the Knights have one state title (2012) and three runner-up finishes (2009, 2018, 2019).
Four members of the current team were on that 2019 squad that lost 3-1 to Green Hope, also of Cary.
“We missed getting back to the finals in that strange COVID year, but this team worked hard to get where they’re at,” Bell said.
“We really wanted to get back to the finals and win it this time,” said senior standout Alexis Shelton, a member of that 2019 squad.
The Knights were a bit shaky at times Tuesday night against a Watauga (22-5) team that had been a 3A power for several years before moving up to 4A this season.
The Pioneers jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first set and trailed only 14-12, when Ardrey Kell went on a 8-1 run and eventually won 25-14.
Watauga led 10-9 in the second set, but Ardrey Kell scored six of the next seven points for a 15-11 advantage. They went on to win 25-20, scoring their final point when Shelton blocked a shot at the net by Watauga’s Brooke Scheffler.
Scheffler and fellow junior Caroline Farthing dominated the net in the third set, and Watauga outscored the Knights 10-4 down the stretch for a 25-20 victory.
“We’re small, but we’re mighty,” said Watauga head coach Kim Pryor, whose front line averaged about 5 inches shorter than Ardrey Kell’s. “That third set is how we played all year – scrappy defense, hustling to get to the ball.”
Bell said the Knights seemed to lose their way in the third set.
“We got away from what we were doing well,” she said. “Give credit to them (the Pioneers). They’re a good team, and they made us pay.”
Watauga took a 6-5 lead in the fourth set, behind two kills and a service ace by Farthing. That’s when Bell called a time out.
“I told them to do a relaxation thing – to close their eyes, relax, and get rid of all their tensions,” the Knights’ veteran head coach said.
“That time out really helped us settle down,” said Shelton, the Knights’ standout senior outside hitter.
Ardrey Kell went on an 11-1 run for a 13-6 lead. The Pioneers closed to 16-15 with their own 8-2 run, but Bell called another time out, settled her team, and the Knights scored nine of the final 11 points for a 25-17 victory.
“I got a little anxious at times,” Bell said of the match. “We gave away too many points. That’s something we can’t afford to do. But we also did a lot of things right tonight. And I’m really happy for this team.”
THREE WHO MATTERED
Alexis Shelton, Ardrey Kell: A 6-2 senior outside hitter who has committed to Oklahoma, Shelton had 22 kills and five blocks. With her size and strength, she was able to dominate the match during several stretches.
Caroline Farthing, Watauga: A junior outside hitter, Farthing finished with 15 kills, two blocks and two aces. She had seven kills in the third set, which the Pioneers won.
Victoria Kasanganay, Ardrey Kell: A 6-2 sophomore middle hitter, Kasanganay teamed with Alexis Shelton to dominate the net. She finished with six kills and four blocks.
WORTH MENTIONING
▪ Alexis Shelton’s younger sister, Camryn, was a big part of the Ardrey Kell defense. Camryn, a sophomore, had three kills and 12 digs. Several of those digs came with her diving to the floor to save kills attempts by the Pioneers.
▪ Green Level, Ardrey Kell’s opponent in Saturday’s finals, opened last academic year to alleviate overcrowding at Green Hope, which beat Ardrey Kell in the 2019 finals. But nobody on this year’s Green Level team played on the 2019 Green Hope varsity.
▪ Six members of Ardrey Kell’s team, including standout Alexis Shelton and regulars Kailey Keough and Layla Hassell, are seniors. But the Knights are basically a young team. They have one freshman, five sophomores and six juniors returning from the team in uniform Tuesday night.
Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle
