Viqueens reach end of road

SUMMERTOWN -- They ventured deeper into the postseason than any other Community sports team this century, but the path less traveled reached a dead end as the Viqueen volleyball team lost 3-0 to Summertown in a Class A sectional match.

Community's season comes to a close with the school's first district title since its baseball team earned a plaque in 1999. The ladies were also a single point away on two occasions from the Region 5-A championship.

While the journey won't reach its preferred destination, Community exceeded all expectations by winning clutch points in pressure-packed matches just to get to this point.

"It's been tremendous," four-year Community coach Allison Layne said. "It's a memory for the school. It's a memory for these girls to have forever. I can't say enough about these girls. They work hard. The seven seniors did a great job leading this year, and they wanted it. It came together right at the perfect time. Our season (record) probably doesn't show what we wanted it to, but we worked hard the entire season and got better. And, that's every coach's wish. They gave me everything I ever wanted."

After coming up short in their last sectional appearance in 2007, the Lady Eagles (38-11) return to the state tournament Oct. 28-30 in Murfreesboro. They tripped there three straight years 1997-99, including a state championship appearance against Hume-Fogg in '98.

"Our kids have worked hard, and we're excited to be down to the final eight," Summertown coach Steve Keeton said.

Community didn't seem fazed by the rowdy crowed in the town's elementary school gym, jumping out to a 16-10 lead in the first set.

"We did a really good job at the net," Layne said. "We got off the bus ready to play. We had several blocks and hit really well in the beginning. We were loose, served the ball well, everything you could have wanted."

Disaster struck shortly after the torrid start with Summertown scoring six unanswered points to tie it up before ending the set on a 7-1 run to take it 25-21.

"It was huge," Keeton said of the spurt. "We started out really out of our game. I think we were just playing scared and a little nervous and that kind of thing. Once we settled down, we started hitting a few serves and things started clicking. I felt like at any time if we could just make a run, then we would be OK."

Keeton credited the serving of Courtney Grooms for getting them back in the game.

Community led on just one occasion in the second set, 2-1, before the hosts responded with five straight points. The Viqueens dug in and drew to within 14-13 midway through but another 5-0 stretch propelled the Lady Eagles to a 25-16 triumph.

No matter how many timeouts were called or where Community hit the ball or how much velocity the white pill carried, Summertown managed to keep it from hitting the hardwood more times than not. The Lady Eagles followed their hitters' lanes the entire evening, even balls blocked straight down at the net somehow found themselves changing direction and making solid contact with their arms and hands.

The third and final set was all Summertown from start to finish. An early 7-0 run gave them breathing room and they cruised to a 25-19 win to punch their tickets for state.

"They're such a good team at getting the ball over the net," Layne said of her foe. "They're probably one of the better teams we've seen on defense the entire year. They just continue to get the ball over the net no matter what happens.

"We're used to continuing to put away hits. Some of those hits we didn't put away tonight. It gets kind of frustrating on our side when you don't put them away, and you have to keep on rallying it back. At the end, we stopped hitting; you can't ever stop hitting. We started pushing a lot."

Megan Busbee led the Viqueens with 10 kills and six blocks. Georgia Ralston provided eight service points and six kills. Kassidy Lane also had six kills.

The tallest player on Keeton's roster is 5-foot-9, which played into Community's favor. However, quickness, athleticism and experience made up for their vertical challenges.

"It's a typical Summertown team," Keeton said. "We seem to be small, but we play a lot bigger. Our middle (hitters) are 5-7 but that's deceiving because they'll block a lot of balls and hit well. We've had to rely on our quickness and just keeping the ball in play and work on jumping."

Community's season comes to a close with a record of 5-15. They bid farewell to seven seniors -- Busbee, Lane, Chelsea Buckingham, Lauren Freeman, Ashley Orlando, Katie Maselter and Cheyenne Ralston.

"They're huge off the floor as well as on the floor," Layne said of the seniors. "They've got great attitudes, great work ethic. They wanted it. We rode these seniors the last 4-5 games. They did a great job, and I couldn't ask for anything better. I'm just happy to be their coach. To get to go on this ride with them has been a blast."

It took the program 11 years to get to this point. Layne hopes that the experience gained for girls like Tiffany Davis and Georgia Ralston will help them take the next step in 2010.

"Once you've been here, it gets better every time. Hopefully next time we'll be a little bit more prepared for it," Layne said.