Gallery by Tina Laney
The Beckley volleyball team entered postseason play running like a well-oiled machine and a heavy favorite to make another trip to the state tournament.
Wednesday night, when Class AAAA Region 3, Section 2 play kicked off, the Flying Eagles merely downshifted and rolled over Riverside for their ninth straight sectional title.
“It is very easy to play down to a team’s level. We try not to and try to keep the game to our pace,” Beckley head coach Bre Rhodes said. “We have five seniors that are hungry and they are ready for that state championship. They are leading us that way.”
After Riverside opened the night with a grinding three set win over Oak Hill (25-22, 26-24, 25-23), they had to immediately match up with the top-seeded Flying Eagles.
Beckley wasted no time taking command against the Warriors racing out to a 7-2 lead in the opening set. The home team kept their foot on the gas pedal closing the set on a 15-4 run on it’s way to a 25-9 win.
Altogether Beckley recorded 12 kills in set one led by Salia Harris with five, while Anya Hasan, Mollie Smith and Alexis Coleman added two each.
The Flying Eagles onslaught at the net continued in set two sparked by back-to-back kills from Harris and Reagan Rist to get the ball rolling.
Alexis Coleman jumped into the limelight with a blast to give Beckley a 21-12 lead later in the match prior to a kill from Anya Hasan moments later which made it 23-12 for the biggest lead of the set.
A tip from Kylee Carson stopped the momentum briefly for Riverside, but Beckley cruised home to a 25-17 win.
“Everybody has worked hard and done their job,” Rhodes said. “Mollie is a freshman that has come in strong. Anya had developed on the outside. Reagan on the right side hits the ball hard too. We needed everyone to develop the way they have to be successful.”
The visitors were solid early in set three and led briefly before Beckley turned on the jets once again. A blast from Smith evened the set at 7-7 and was followed by three straight aces from Kyndra Bailey.
Leading 15-10, the Flying Eagles dropped the final hammer on the Warriors with a 9-0 run keyed by four aces from all-state setter Abby Dillon. Smith hammered her third kill of the set to send Beckley to the championship match with a 25-12 win.
Match two against Oak Hill was the big one for Riverside. The winner was guaranteed a spot in the regional round, while it was the end of the road for the losing squad.
Once again the Warriors dug deep and swept the Red Devils, 3-0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-23). Riverside trailed most of the final set before bouncing back to take the win.
“I am super excited to make it to the regionals. It is one of the few times we have made it in school history,” Riverside head coach Kashif Ealey said. “That has been our motto all year, start quick and finish strong. They picked it up and we finished it out there in the third set.”
After nine grueling sets, the Warriors had very little gas left in the tank and the Flying Eagles finished the visitors in quick fashion.
Mollie Smith dropped two kills and Reagan Rist had one to spark a 6-1 lead that went as high as 21-5 in a 25-7 win. Harris was a beast once again in the opener with five kills and Rist finished with three.
“When Mollie gets a hold of it, she gets a hold of it. I was excited about her from the beginning of the season,” Rhodes said. “She is still young in the game, but she has a lot of potential.”
Set two was just as bad for the Warriors with Smith setting the tone and Harris following with two kills. With the Flying Eagles leading 17-6, Harris and Smith combined to erase three attacks from Riverside en route to another 25-7 win.
“We work hard on trying to block,” Rhodes said. “We have a great defense, but you if you get a block or a touch up there, it really helps. That is something we work hard on.”
Beckley finished the 25-7 trifecta in set three with the final kill from Harris securing the sectional title for the Flying Eagles.
The Warriors had no answers for the vast array of attackers that Beckley threw at them and the distribution from Dillon was flawless, keeping the Warriors guessing all night long.
“Granted they played a lot of sets in a row and they were tired. “They really played well for as many (sets) as they had to play tonight,” Rhodes said. “Abby distributes the ball evenly. She knows who she needs to be fed at the right time and she does make sure everyone is involved.”
Beckley will now host St. Albans Wednesday in one Region 3 co-final, while Riverside will travel to Section 1 champion George Washington the same night.
Ironically, it will be the first meeting of the season for the teams in each match.
“It is kind of good not knowing,” Rhodes said. “We have to play our best that way, but we are excited and glad to be hosting the regional.”
