The USC Salkehatchie volleyball team hit the road Saturday for a trimatch at Davidson-Davie Community College in Thomasville, N.C., where they faced Davidson-Davie for match 1 and Southwest Virginia for match 2.
"Having lost to Davidson-Davie in the past, I knew we had to bring something special to the court in order to earn a win," said Aquino.
In the first half of the set, the Salkehatchie women started in a 6-2 rotation, with 3 hitters and 2 setters.
"In our recent matches, we couldn't afford to not have 3 hitting options at all times, so I started in this rotation thinking the same," Aquino explained.
However, the Storm team came out strong and earned a hefty lead over the Salkehatchie squad. Coach Aquino knew she had to make a fast change if she wanted to turn things around.
"We were behind 6-12 in the first set. I called a timeout and immediately switched my team to a 5-1 rotation with a double-libero switch. I needed to ensure our defense and serve receive was solid with one setter and the right hitters if we were to regain the lead," Aquino said.
That's when things took a turn. The Salkehatchie squad started winning crucial rallies as they closed the gap on the Storm team.
"One rally at a time, one point at a time we started coming for them until the score was 21-22 and Storm called a timeout," Aquino said. "I knew we had to focus and lock in if we wanted to take the lead and win the set."
The Salkehatchie squad came out of the timeout and immediately won the point tying the set 22-22.
"That was the magical moment," Aquino said. "We were in our most successful rotation and wanted the win more than they did."
The Salkehatchie squad took the lead and won the set 25-23. They went on to win the next set, losing a close third, but returned in the fourth set with a determined mind, and ended victorious over the DD Storm team 3-1.
The win was a program first against Davidson-Davie. Salkehatchie hits the road again Tuesday to take on Denmark Tech and then returns home to face USC Sumter and USC Union.
"We have a packed week full of all conference matches," Aquino said. "I am determined to win all 3 matches. We can do it if we show up."
Comments