Ally Roberts may be smiling, but she’ll still destroy you. (John Fisken photo)
The match ended the only way it could, with Ally Roberts fingertips being the very last thing to touch the volleyball.
Riding a match-long burst of energy from the high-flying, hard-hitting, big-grinning junior, the Coupeville High School spikers thrashed visiting Orcas Island in four sets Friday to grab their first win of the season.
The 23-25, 25-14, 25-14, 25-17 non-conference victory, which also featured especially strong work from McKenzie Bailey and Payton Aparicio on a night when every single Wolf player took a turn in the spotlight, lifted Coupeville to 1-3.
For a team that hadn’t played in more than a week (they had been off since a close loss at Mount Vernon Christian Sept. 15), CHS looked strong.
“A great win for our program tonight! We had an awesome week of practice preparing for this match and that showed in their confidence and movement on the court,” said CHS coach Breanne Smedley. “I was impressed with the way the team came back from a close loss in the first set.
“It shows their mental toughness is improving,” she added. “We still need to focus on playing our tempo and level of competition regardless of who is on the other side of the net. We are looking forward to next week!”
Other than two stretches in the first set, the Wolves thoroughly controlled the match in every aspect.
In fact, it probably should have been a straight-sets win, as Coupeville had a 22-15 lead in the first set before hitting their only truly rocky section of the match.
Bouncing back immediately, the Wolves seemed to take immediate charge as soon as Roberts and sophomore Hope Lodell entered the match to start the second set.
Both were poppin’ with energy, and it sent a ripple effect through their teammates as well, as Coupeville bolted out to a 9-1 lead in the second set.
As Lauren Rose ripped off a sensational run at the service stripe, Bailey stepped up to the net and began to shred the Vikings’ kneecaps, dropping wicked spikes left and right.
With Orcas on the run a bit, that offered Roberts a chance to get fancy, and she obliged, with a string of picture-perfect tips into open space that dropped artfully between sprawled Viking hitters.
After launching a shot that sliced over the net with maybe an inch to give before hitting and kicking away for a winner, she headed to the bench as a fan bellowed “Nice job, Ally!!”
Pausing for just a moment, Roberts beamed at the stands and lobbed back a “Thanks!!,” then went down the bench, slapping hands with all her giddy teammates.
She didn’t sit down for long, however, returning to team with Valen Trujillo for another huge play.
With Rose again off and running on another long, and very successful stretch at the service stripe, the two squads put together one of the night’s best rallies.
Orcas appeared to hit a winner, but Trujillo came hurtling out of nowhere, sliding halfway across the court on her knees to barely get her hands under the ball at the last millisecond.
The orb shot upwards and Roberts, cartwheeling into position, popped it over her head — her back was to the net — and between two Vikings who swung and missed in unison, setting off another roar from the Wolf bench and their fans.
The play was symbolic of the night Roberts had, as she collected 11 kills, tying her with Bailey for team honors, but also played error-free, with a whopping .733 hitting percentage.
The final two sets were a parade of big-time hits, as Aparicio (five kills) and Bailey began to pound the ball off of Orcas bodies rat-a-tat style. An arm here, a leg there, a direct thunk to the chest of a Viking at one point.
One spike from Aparicio made the gym floor shudder and her large family fan section jump to their feet.
A moment later Bailey went her one better, launching a laser that hit with enough fury that mom Donna, out working the concession stand, could have felt the aftershock.
Kyla Briscoe (four kills), Tiffany Briscoe and Katrina McGranahan (six kills) joined in on the spike explosion.
Meanwhile, Sydney Autio teamed with Trujillo to track down almost everything and freshman Emma Smith, playing on her birthday (she was serenaded by her teammates post-match) executed a gorgeous lil’ drop shot for a winner.
Rose garnered 27 assists, while Trujillo went low for 16 digs.
And Roberts?
She was everywhere and nowhere at once, popping up for a tip here, a screaming spike of her own there.
Nothing got past her on this night, and the Wolves fed off of her energy and giggles.
So, it was fitting that as the final ball went skyward, it was Roberts who launched herself airborne along the right sideline, her fist swinging like a hammer as she dropped the wrath of Thor on the ball.
Rally Ally for the win!
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