The Shadow
LOW MOOR – The stakes are at an all-time high come Monday evening in Low Moor.
That’s when one of the Class 3, Region C volleyball playoff semifinals takes place.
The regions No. 2 overall seed and reigning Three Rivers District champion Alleghany hosts a familiar opponent in the regional semifinals No. 11 Rockbridge County.
The Wildcats are the talk of the tournament thus far.
Rockbridge began the tournament by defeating No. 6 Western Albemarle in five sets last Monday night in the regional first-round.
Two days later, in the regional quarterfinals the Wildcats once again pulled off the tournament’s biggest upset as they defeated the No. 3-seeded East Rockingham (22-4), also in five sets.
In their upset win over the Eagles last Wednesday, ERHS overcame an 0-2 hole to force a decisive fifth set in which Rockbridge locked down and held off a furious rally.
Meanwhile, No. 2 Alleghany (23-3) took care of business themselves with a straight-set victory over No. 10 Brookville in the regional quarterfinals.
This will be the third time that Alleghany and Rockbridge have played one another this season.
The two teams played twice at the very beginning of the season where the Cougars won in straight sets in both matches.
However, that was a completely different Rockbridge team.
The Wildcats started out their season 1-7 overall, including the pair of losses to the Cougars. Since then, RCHS has won 11 of their last 14 matches, including their two regional playoff upset victories.
It’s hard to beat a team three times. East Rock felt that same experience on Wednesday. They too had beaten Rockbridge twice during the regular season, but ultimately lost in regionals.
The magical playoff for Rockbridge run could come to an end to a team that is simply on fire right now. Alleghany has won 12 straight matches and has not lost in nearly two months.
During their 12-match win streak, the Cougars have lost only two sets and won 36 during that span.
For Rockbridge, that is a daunting resume to look at.
On Monday when the two teams play, they will be coached by district coaches of the year. Charles Lietch and Mary Tyree were named the Three Rivers district coaches of the year, while Gabe Wagner in his first year with Rockbridge was named the Valley District coach of the year.
Monday’s regional semifinals match is set for 6:30 p.m.
The other regional semifinals match featured top-seeded Liberty Christian Academy hosting No. 5 Turner Ashby.
Whomever wins the semifinals, the higher seed will be the hosts for the regional finals.
