by Emma Harring – Sports Writer

After an undefeated season, the Centennial Eagles volleyball team went
into the 3A East Regional Semifinals with high hopes.The team played
the Atholton High School Raiders on November 7th and came away
victorious in four sets.

Junior Jessie Link said that although they expected to play
Mt. Hebron High School, they went in to the game anticipating a
victory. The Eagles came out strong in the first two sets,
over-powering the Raiders with scores of 25-17 and 25-22.
The Raiders put up a challenge in the third set defeating the
Eagles 25-22. However, after re-focusing and re-grouping, the Eagles
came back in full force. A tight race between the two teams led to a
back and forth battle at the end. The Eagles won the final set, 29-27,
because of key plays by junior Kristen Ritchie and seniors Lexi
White-Torruellas and Trisha Mockapetris.

While Centennial volleyball Head Coach Larry Schofield was
happy with his team’s performance, he still saw room for improvement.
“We played well, but we still have a lot of work to do,” he said. “We
played aggressive and had smart hits especially in the first three
sets.”

Link commented that going into the Regional Championship
match, against Howard High School on November 9th, they will come with
more intensity and determination than before. “This was a learning
experience and we hope to use this game to propel us forward.”