On Saturday evening, October 25th, as most of the community celebrated Halloween with a parade and trick-or-treating in Vevay; the Switzerland County Lady Pacer volleyball team was having a celebration of its own.
The Lady Pacers defeated Austin in five tough matches to earn the school’s first-ever Sectional crown in volleyball.
And it took three tough matches over two days to get the task done.
The Sectional began on Thursday night, and Switzerland County took on South Ripley in the first round. The Lady Pacers dispatched the Lady Raiders in three games by scores of 25-21, 25-16, 25-22 to move on.
Saturday saw semifinal matches in the morning, with Switzerland County taking on North Decatur and it turned into a five-set, hard-fought battle.
Varsity matches are best 3-out of-5, with the first four matches being won by the team that gets to 25 points by at least two. The fifth and deciding set – should it be needed – it played to 15, winning by at least two points.
The scores in the semifinal saw Switzerland County win by a 25-22 count; fall by scores of 20-25 and 19-25 to fall behind a set; then battle back to win the fourth set by a tight score of 25-23.
The sent the teams into the fifth set, and Coach Kodi Thayer’s Lady Pacers earned the win by a slim 16-14 tally.
At one point in the fifth set the Lady Pacers were down 9-2, but fought back to win the game.
That big win propelled the team into the Sectional championship game against Austin, which was played on Saturday night.
Playing for the school’s first-ever Sectional championship in volleyball; Switzerland County faced another physical battle with the Lady Eagles – and again the championship match went all five sets.
Switzerland County fell behind early, losing the first game by a score of 18-25; but battled right back to tie the match with a 25-13 win in the second set.
Austin then responded with a 19-25 win in the third set to move close to the title; but again the Lady Pacers kept fighting, winning the critical fourth set by a score of 25-15.
Once again, Switzerland County was faced with a ‘winner take all’ fifth and deciding game, and again it was a nail biter.
Late in the fifth set Austin held a 14-12 lead – only needing one more point to put the game away, but the Pacers fought back.
With the tough serving of Makenzie Mathews and flawless play by the rest of the team, the Pacers came back and clinched the championship.
For her efforts during the entire tournament, Switzerland County’s Kelsi Konkle earned Most Valuable Player honors for the All Sectional team; and she was joined on that squad by teammates Eve Galbreath and Kinley Morton.
Members of the Sectional championship squad include: Eve Galbreath, Olivia Pavy, Jacqueline Hensley, Stephanie Smith, Kelsi Konkle, Brooke Todd, Makenzie Mathews, Kayla Jordan, Baylie Scudder, Hope Tankersley, Mallory Phagan, Ariana Bright, and Kinley Morton.
Switzerland County played Providence, the top-ranked team in the state in Class 2A, on Tuesday at Providence in the Regional.