by Tom Chillemi –
The crowd was loud.
The Rappahannock volleyball team brought a large contingent of fans when they came to Middlesex on October 7.
The Middlesex Lady Chargers were looking to avenge their only loss of the season, which came during the season opener six weeks ago at Rapppahannock. They did.
The crowd intensity fueled the battle, which was some of the best volleyball played in the John S. Clements Memorial Gymnasium this season.
The packed MHS “student section” chanted in unison, overpowering the enthusiastic Rappahannock fans. “It’s fun to see ‘Charger Pride” rise up once again!” said Lady Charger coach Brian Walton. “The girls really feed off the crowd!”
It looked like the Lady Chargers would need that help after losing in the opening set. The opponents traded points and Middlesex led 21-20 before Rappahannock surged to the 25-22 win.
In the second set, the Lady Chargers stumbled from the gate and trailed 7-3 before knotting it at 7-7. The score would be tied 7 more times. Neither team led by more than one point until Middlesex got a 20-17 advantage. From there the Lady Chargers rolled to a 25-20 win.
Momentum was with Middlesex which claimed the next two sets 25-19, 25-20 and the match.
“This was a very big win for us,” said Coach Walton. “We should meet them again in the regionals.”
