West Johnston volleyball wins Greater Neuse tournament title over Harnett Central

West Johnston’s rookie head volleyball coach Meredith Blake and her husband, Taylor – who serves as one of her assistant coaches – had taken a really big rest before the final of the Greater Neuse River 4A Tournament.

They could have taken the easy route with “Champions” shirts since the Wildcats had already won the regular season, but these said “Conference and Tournament Champions.”

It did all work out for the Wildcats, who took a four-set victory over Harnett Central, which wasn’t really supposed to be there either. West won the first two sets by 25-19 each time, then fell 25-20 before taking the clincher 25-17 on Tuesday.

It was the first conference volleyball tournament title for West, which opened in 2002. Central had topped West in the final last season in Angier.

The Wildcats (17-6), who will be seeded No. 7 overall, will open state 4A tournament play at home on Saturday against an opponent to be determined. And with a win, West would also be guaranteed a second-round game at home.

Central (11-14) could have hosted a first-round playoff game as the second-seeded team out of the conference with a win.

Turning point

With the Wildcats up two sets to one and trailing 12-10 in the fourth, freshman Alexis Jones served for five straight points to give the Wildcats a lead they never lost.

They said it

“This is surreal,” Meredith Blake said. “We were expecting a .500 season. I never thought we would take regular-season champions and tournament. Harnett Central is a great team and they have a great coach.”

Three who mattered

Abby Barbour, West Johnston: The junior middle hitter had 15 kills with five blocks and was 18 for 18 on serves.

“I was thinking after the third set that we already had two under our belt and we had just lost some energy,” Barbour said through happy tears. “But I was really confident we could finish in the fourth set.”

Emily Rentz, West Johnston: The senior right hitter got 14 of her 16 serves into play.

“This is so exciting,” Rentz said. “It’s a really big deal because I’m a senior and it’s never been done before. I’m just really proud of my team and the mentality we had.”

Shelby Lackey, West Johnston: The freshman was successful on two of her three serves and had two kills.

“This is crazy!” said Lackey, who played for Blake at McGee’s Crossroads Middle last season. “I’m so excited I was a part of it, but this is great. Coach told us after the third set to play as a team. Make smart choices but be aggressive.”

By the numbers

14: Successful serves in 16 tries by Rentz.

15: Kills by Barbour.

18: The number of serves in play in as many attempts by Barbour.

20: The number of times the score was tied in a set.

Looking ahead

West hosts somebody on Saturday while Central hits the road.

“We started struggling defensively toward the end and our (weak) passing got to us,” said Central coach Jason Harrell, whose team lost every starter from last year’s club. “Everything kind of fell apart from there. But don’t get me wrong. West Johnston has a great team.”

This story was originally published October 20, 2015 at 9:09 PM with the headline "West Johnston volleyball wins Greater Neuse tournament title over Harnett Central."