Volleyball roundup: Rock Hill 9 seniors lead great start, plus all region standings

The Rock Hill Bearcats have overcome a slow start and are currently riding a four-game winning streak. That has left them with an overall record of 8-3 and a win in their opening region match.

The ‘Cats opened the season losing two of their first four matches. They made some corrections, learned from the experience and have won six of the last seven.

Veteran head coach Cindy Elder likes the way her team has responded since the first few trips to the floor.

“We have gotten better in our passing and our serving as well as our transition,” she told The Herald last week. “We worked a lot on fundamentals, and that has really improved.”

Rock Hill split with Catawba Ridge, beat Ashley Hall and lost to Fort Mill in their first four matches. Several days after dropping a 3-1 decision to Fort Mill, they defeated Nation Ford 3-1.

Since then, they have non-region wins against Fort Mill, Clover, Catawba Ridge and South Pointe. Three of those four wins have been by scores of 3-0, while the other one was 3-1. Their only loss was to Nation Ford.

Last week, they opened region play with a solid 3-0 win over Spring Valley on the road.

“It is always good to get a win in the region opener,” Elder added. “Winning on the road made it even better.”

Rock Hill has seen good leadership so far this year, and that has been one of the reasons for their success.

“We have nine seniors on this year’s team,“ she said. “They know the program, and they know what I want as well as what I expect. They have done an excellent job leading this far. ... “There are no easy wins in this region. You have to be ready every time you step on the floor. You have to know your opponent, anticipate what is going to happen, and be ready to react.”

Who is leading Rock Hill?

The Bearcats have a roster of 16 players. They use a rotation of seven or eight players each match depending on the opponent.

Rock Hill is getting just more than 13 kills per set: Sophomore Camie Mitrovich leads the team with 2.8 kills per set. Senior Kaitlyn Stevenson follows with 2.6 per set, while senior Kate Partlow has 2.4 per set.

Megan O’Rourke, who is the primary setter, has 7.1 assists per set on the year, and she leads the team in aces. Senior Emma Lesslie is averaging 2.9 assists per set.

Rock Hill is recording nearly 18 digs per set. Senior Jayla Neely leads the ‘Cats in digs with 4.6 per set. Mitrovich has 3.3 per set, while O’Rourke has 2.9 per set. Both Steveson and Partlow have 2.4 per set.

Rock Hill has one disadvantage, which is a lack of height, but Elder works to counter that.

“We have picked up the tempo quite a bit,” she said. “Last year we did most of our attacking from the outside. Now we can attack from there and in the middle.”

Coordination among the players has made that possible.

“Our setter has to read all of the options, and all of our hitters have to be available,” she added. “We have really improved in getting that done.”

Another reason for the ‘Cats success has been assistant coaches. Rock Hill has Jane Julian and Taylor Ball on the sidelines assisting Elder.

Julian has been with the program for 17 seasons, while Ball, who is a former Rock Hill player, is in her first year.

“They are a tremendous help,” Elder added. “I can not see everything. They are excellent in preparation for matches, personnel decisions, and making adjustments during a match.”

Rock Hill will continue its season on Tuesday when they host region foe Blythewood. They travel to face another region team in Ridge View on Thursday, before playing in the Dorman Classic Friday and Saturday.

The key for continued success for the ‘Cats is very simple, Elder said.

“We just need to keep working hard and improving like we have been doing,” Elder said. “We cannot take anything for granted.”

A QUICK LOOK AT THE AREA REGIONS

Region matches have begun in York County, Lancaster County and Chester County. It looks to be a battle for the top spot in each region, as quite a few teams have gotten off to good starts. There are some big matches coming up this week in every region.

Region 3-5 A

Clover is first at 1-0 in the region and 5-2 overall. Fort Mill is 1-1 (12-4) and Nation Ford checks in at 1-1 (10-4). Boiling Springs is also 1-1 (11-7), while Gaffney is 0-1 (2-5).

Region 4-5 A

Rock Hill is 1-0 in region play and 8-3 overall. Blythewood is also 1-0 (8-4), while Spring Valley is 1-1 (3-5). Northwestern is also 1-1 (3-6), and Ridge View is 0-2 (0-5).

Region 3-4A

Catawba Ridge is 4-0 in region play and 12-5 in all matches. South Pointe is 1-1 (2-4), and Indian Land is 1-2 (4-6). York is also 1-2 (3-5), and Lancaster is 0-4 (0-2).

Region 4-3A

Mid-Carolina is 2-0 in the region and 3-5 overall. Keenan is 1-0 (3-4), and Fairfield Central is 0-1 (0-4). Chester is 0-2 (2-5), while Lower Richland is 0-0 (0-4).

Region 4-2A

North Central is 5-0 in the region and 12-0 overall, and Andrew Jackson is also 5-0 (8-4). Chesterfield is 3-2 (4-3), and Buford is 4-3 (2-3). York Prep is 2-3 (4-4), with Cheraw 0-4 (0-5) and Central 0-5 (0-7) completing the region.

Region 2-1A

Lewisville is 1-0 in the region and 5-0 overall. McBee is also 1-0 (3-2), and Great Falls is 1-1 (2-4). Governor’s School is 0-1 (0-4), while CA Johnson is 0-1 (0-5).

This story was originally published September 21, 2021 at 6:00 AM.