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Dragons Dismantle Devils

Mark Pinson/Highlands Today

Lake Placid junior outside hitter Sierra Weaver blasts a shot as Avon Park’s Daija Barrett (7) and Zakia Hart (5) go for the block during Friday night’s match.

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By MARK PINSON Highlands Today

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 21, 2008

AVON PARK - The Lake Placid volleyball team, led by junior outside hitter Sierra Weaver, made sure Green Dragon coach Marilyn Jones ushered in another year in style by sweeping Avon Park 25-16, 25-10, 25-9 on Friday night in the Red Devil gym.

"We were excited about playing Avon Park and we wanted to make sure coach Jones had a good birthday," said Weaver, who had nine kills and seven blocks. "We started out a little slow in the first game, but we began to talk, moved our feet and reacted to the ball.

"This was a good win for us and this team has the talent, senior leadership and chemistry to have a great season if we stay focused."

The win gave Lake Placid a much-needed shot of confidence after losing last week to a talented Okeechobee squad.

"We took a little while to settle down tonight," said Jones. "But we got some blocks and started playing as a team and our confidence grew.

"The girls wanted to make it a special night and to get a win against a county rival on my birthday makes it even better."

Avon Park looked like it was out to spoil the celebration by jumping out to a 7-2 lead in the first game.

The Red Devils, who were led by senior captain Daija Barrett's seven kills and five blocks, played loose and aggressive much to the delight of the home fans.

But unforced errors and several bad serves short-circuited the Avon Park offense as Lake Placid clawed its way back into the game.

"I don't think we played up to our ability," said first-year Red Devil coach Stephanie Devlin. "We would rally and win the point and then serve the ball into the net.

"We can't win matches playing like that."

Lake Placid senior outside hitter Kaneisha Hamilton - who finished with eight kills and three blocks - used her powerful serve to rip off five consecutive points and give the Green Dragons their first lead at 12-11.

An Ali Baker spike and an errant shot by the Red Devils gave the first game to Lake Placid.

The second game was all Green Dragons, as Hamilton and Jessica Wantuck took turns blasting aces into the holes of the Avon Park defense to take a commanding 13-7 lead.

Any hopes of a Red Devil comeback were dashed by six bad serves, as Lake Placid cruised to a 25-10 victory.

"It's been a tough week with three matches, and the girls are very frustrated and tired of losing," Devlin said. "We have to get some rest and figure out how to turn things around."

The Dragons came out determined to finish the match quickly and jumped out to a 12-5 advantage in the third.

Wantuck, who finished with eight aces, had another strong serving game, and Hamilton, who had seven aces, added strong net play as Lake Placid rolled to the win.

"The girls were pumped up, and it's good to see us play well," Jones said. "We've got our district matches coming up and we want to be ready.

"We didn't rely on any one player and that's good to see because it opens up the floor and makes us harder to defend."

Lake Placid is back on the floor with an away match at Fort Meade on Monday, while Avon Park travels to Frostproof on Monday.

Mark Pinson can be reached at 863-386-5837 or mpinson@highlandstoday.com

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