Indian Creek entered Thursday night’s match at Greenwood having won its previous five competitions in straight sets.
The Woodmen offered up some serious resistance, but the Braves, led by senior Faith Wiseman’s 11 kills, remained undefeated with a 25-20, 27-25, 25-21 victory.
Close as the scores are, they’re still not indicative of the match’s closeness.
Greenwood held an 18-15 advantage in the opening set, was up 25-24 in the second and 21-18 in the third, only to see the Braves (6-0) remain composed all three times when their backs were against the wall.
“If I’m honest, this is the first time all season we’ve been down like that,” Indian Creek coach Daisha Holt said. “And that’s what I just told them. I was like, ‘Guys, that’s what makes a team.’ A team that can come back from behind and still come out on top.
“It’s just having team camaraderie. We’re playing for each other, not ourselves. Having fun is a little bit of it. The second part is just going out there and playing loose. But that also comes with age, and we do have a much older group this year.”
The Woodmen led by three points on five different occasions in the opening set, the last at 18-15, before the Braves closed with a 10-2 scoring run. Big plays down the stretch included the 6-foot-4 Wiseman teaming with junior Mattie Key for a block, and junior Kendall Eden’s service aces accounting for two of the final three points.
Greenwood climbed back from a 23-18 deficit in the second with a 6-0 burst, only to see Indian Creek tie it on Key’s tip. She eventually recorded her lone ace of the night to close out the set.
The Braves finished with a 7-0 flurry at the end of the third set, starting with junior setter Jasmine Day’s perfectly placed ball to an unoccupied portion of floor, a Wiseman block, senior Grayson Burkett’s service ace and consecutive kills from sophomore Gabie Francis.
Burkett and Eden each had two aces for Indian Creek; Key, Francis and sophomore Alexa Sichting chipped in five kills each.
“I feel like the environment has changed a lot,” Key said. “I don’t know what it is about it, but we’re all always happy, having fun, and I feel like it brings the team together. And we have a lot of really good chemistry.”
That leads to a complete lack of panic during timeouts, regardless of the score.
“I feel like we’re relying more on each other, and we believe in each other to be able to come back from that,” Key said. “It’s nothing negative. It’s all positive, and believing in each other.”
Greenwood (2-7) received eight kills and two service aces from senior middle blocker Brooklyn Bell, while junior Karissa Harris added six kills, and soph Tori Ortman four. Senior defensive specialist Abi Willham had three aces, with Bell and senior hitter Amy Luttrell adding two apiece.
Indian Creek hosts its own invitational on Saturday, which begins at 10 a.m. The Woodmen are idle until playing at Shelbyville next Thursday.
