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P.K. Yonge saw its three-match winning streak come to a halt Thursday against visiting Gainesville High.
The Hurricanes (7-4) overwhelmed the Blue Wave (3-4) by capturing the last two sets by 14 points each to secure the 3-0 (25-17, 25-11, 25-11) win.
Early Set Struggles
The Blue Wave dug themselves into early deficits in the first two sets. Two service errors had them down 6-2, as the match opened before Jorryn Dye recorded a kill and block to bring the Blue Wave back into the game.
After a score by Holdyn Moore to tie the game at 12-all, P.K. Yonge tried to lean on the home crowd’s energy through “Let’s Go Blue Wave” chants, but was unable to. The service errors continued, and the Hurricanes capitalized with power to secure a first-set win.
The Blue Wave had no response for the Hurricanes, who came out firing in the second set, jumping to an early 7-0 lead. Outside hitter Brinkley Kinsell led the charge with one block, one kill and an ace to maintain the GHS momentum in the set win.
Power Clouds Passing
Gainesville High set out to show P.K. Yonge how much power it has. For most of the match, the Hurricanes’ serves and returns proved to be too much, as the Blue Wave struggled to get set and return with good attacks of their own leading to costly faults.
In the third set, the Blue Wave were more poised and able to control the ball more efficiently as they tried to survive in the match.
With better passing came better attacks. Moore sunk multiple kills, but it was not enough.
The Hurricanes responded with a run of their own by scoring nine straight points to close out the match.
Coaches Comments
Sports are full of ups and downs. The Blue Wave are composed of sixth-graders, a couple seventh and eighth-graders, and only two seniors. For a young team, battling through adversity early in matches is important. Enrique Wiseman recognizes it.
“The team is very resilient, especially the young players so the conversation was very simple,” Wiseman said. “Just try to get better and improve from the previous sets and see if anything could change going into the third.”
Up Next
After competing in this weekend’s Bell Invitational, P.K. Yonge has a rematch with Gainesville High at the Purple Palace on Monday at 6:30 p.m.
“Hopefully we play a whole lot better than we did tonight,” Wiseman said. “But it’s really more about just controlling our side of the net and making less unforced errors on our side and then the game could change from there.”
Gainesville High has swept the @pkyongedrs Blue Waves 0-3. The precise sets by #17 Trinity Jacobs and powerful kills by #10 Holdyn Moore were no match for Gainesville’s consistency and power. They will face each other again Monday. @ESPNGainesville @ThePrepZone @MaxPreps pic.twitter.com/oeraUm2FJE
— Isabella Rivera (@isa_rivera_) September 15, 2023
