Garner volleyball glides past South Johnston

Before the season, Garner volleyball coach Jason Boyette figured his club would be a ‘work in progess’ this fall -- an assessment that has proven to be spot-on.

Garner is blessed with plenty of talent, especially along the front line with powerful standouts Sanaa Lanier and Shaylynn Hall. But the Trojans are also loaded with underclassmen, and Boyette’s rotation for Wednesday’s non-conference contest at South Johnston featured, at times, two freshmen and three sophomores on the court at the same time.

Predictably, the blend of skill and inexperience has produced its share of ups and downs this year for Garner -- a dynamic that was evident during Wednesday’s match.

Garner flashed brilliance on occasion and struggled at other points, but was eventually able to secure a 28-30, 25-17,25-17, 25-15 decision over South Johnston.

“We are just young and don’t have a lot of experience at certain positions,’’ Boyette said. “It shows sometimes. The more we play, the better we will get. We can be good -- we just have to play like we know how to all of the time.’’

Wednesday’s triumph typified the season to date for Garner (5-6), which boasts some quality wins in addition to a few losses Boyette would rather forget.

Garner surged ahead 10-0 in the first set, only to see South Johnston (1-8) rally to take the set in energetic fashion.

The hosts then moved into a commanding cushion in the second set, but Garner would claw back to win what would prove to be a decisive set.

From there, Garner controlled the proceedings to earn a victory in the clubs’ only meeting this season.

TURNING POINT

After the opening-set disappointment, Garner fell behind 7-1 in the second set and appeared to be in trouble before sophomore Sydney Jones stepped to the service stripe and reeled off eight straight points, including two aces. Hall sent down two kills during the flurry, and Lanier would collect four kills and two blocks later in the set as Garner pulled away while gaining the momentum for good.

“We knew we could play better than the way we were,’’ Lanier said. “We just had to use our athletic ability and had to always be ready for the ball. We just had to take it from there. We feel like we are a better team that (the overall record would indicate).’’

THREE TO KNOW

Sanaa Lanier, Garner: A potential-rich sophomore, Lanier has started at Garner since she was a freshman, and she has developed into an impact player -- both at the net and along the back row. Wednesday, she delivered a well-rounded performance with 13 kills, five blocks and three aces.

Shaylynn Hall, Garner: Hall, a dynamic junior middle hitter, proved to be unstoppable at times as her height (6-foot) and leaping ability consistently challenged the much-smaller South Johnston front. Hall finished with 14 kills and seven blocks.

“We have some very good hitters,’’ Boyette said. “It’s all about passing and setting for us. We have to get those passes up.’’

Torrie Allen, South Johnston: Though only 5-foot-5, Allen was a force at the net for South Johnston, accumulating 10 kills -- the highest number for a South Johnston hitter this season. Five of Allen’s kills came in the first set alone as her club overcame its early deficit.

BY THE NUMBERS

37: Garner powered down a whopping 37 kills for the match, along with 12 blocks.

6: South Johnston used a balanced attack to come back in the first set, with six different players registering kills, led by Allen’s excellence.

5: Boyette has won five conference championships during his 13-year tenure at Garner. With the current talent in place, Boyette will undoubtedly be looking to make a run at a few more league titles in the near future.

12: Slick-serving South Johnston picked up one dozen aces Wednesday, led by four from Mary Ann Brown.

5: South Johnston lost five key seniors from last year’s squad, which won 21 matches. Four of those performers were hitters as coach Matthew Adams was forced to reload this fall at middle and outside.

“We got most of our offense from those four players,’’ Adams said. “The hitters we have now are all short — sometimes we will be 5-foot-5 and 5-foot-6 all the way across the front. We played hard (Wednesday), but our (lack of) height hurts us against teams like Garner.

“But we really fought and came back and won that first set. We’ve lost a lot of matches 3-0 this year, so winning that first set was big for us.’’

This story was originally published September 8, 2016 at 10:38 AM with the headline "Garner volleyball glides past South Johnston."