The landscape of our Three Rivers District has changed quite a bit in the past few years. We have added Patrick County High School and traded Alleghany High for Martinsville High as the league fits on a map a little bit better for sure.
There is a long list of Sports played inside of the District and there are hundreds of Coaches who compete against each other but trust me when I say there is no better Head to Head pairing that rivals the duo of Cindy Edwards of Carroll County High School versus Mark Rohrback of Glenvar High School.
Last night the duo went Kill for Kill and Dig for Dig against each other for the first of two annual matches and this time the victory belonged to the visiting Highlanders, 3-0 ( 25-19, 25-21, 25-20). The tough part about the match was it ended way to early.
Rohrback and Edwards are throwback leaders in a sport that many don’t see as mainstream but good luck trying to convince either of them about that.
The reality is that Cindy Edwards is a Coaching Legend and there will never be another one quite like her on the Volleyball sidelines at Carroll County High School. Part of that is her longevity but a larger portion is her pride and commitment to the sport she loves.
How good is Rohrback for the game of Volleyball ? When he’s not coaching the Glenvar Varsity Girls, he’s coaching the Roanoke College Men. His Highlanders recently captured Back 2 Back State Championships and did so without a player taller than 5’7.
His Wife, Jen, coaches the Junior Varsity team and their daughter Emily is just a Freshman, already playing a key role on the Varsity squad. Why is that fact important to the story ? Because just like when a political candidate wins an election, the chant becomes FOUR MORE YEARS ! We need Edwards versus Rohrback for atleast four more years.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cmSbXsFE3l8
If this was Hollywood, the perfect ending to this pairing would take place four years down the road with both Coaches reaching the Final Four and then riding off into the Sunset before making Aflac commercials together.
The common bond between the pair is simple, intensity and passion for the sport of Volleyball.
Carroll County (7-4,0-2 TRD) welcomed back Ali Wright from her injury but once again played without Senior, Corrie Delp. The score will show a sweep but know that the Lady Cavaliers were in all three sets until the final swing.
The opening set went back and forth with the difference being that Glenvar was able to string together points more frequently. Runs of 4, 3 and 3 were enough to hold the Lady Cavaliers at bay, 25-19.
The second set was decided during a trio of four point spurts. Leading 9-8, Glenvar had a 4-0 run that Carroll County answered with a Laiken Burnett quarterback sneak and a pair of Brooke Webb Kills and a net violation. Glenvar created some breathing room with a follow up 4-0 burst.
Heidi Painter andArizona Thompson teamed up for a perfect block, followed by a well placed winner from Thompson. Painter added a block to cut the lead to 17-15 but Glenvar did just enough to pull out the set, 25-21.
Edwards tweaked her lineup in the third set by moving Faith Nicholson into the Libero. Insert info for the casual fan
Placing Nicholson in the odd jersey freed up Callie Harris to give the Lady Cavaliers another free swinger in an attempt to string together a run or two.
The move produced an early 5-0 run that turned a 7-4 deficit into a 9-4 lead. The best run of the match included to Aces from Ali Wright plus a Kill from the Junior in addition to a Webb Kill and Raylee Goins block.
Wright served another Ace to give the Lady Cavaliers a 19-17 lead but Glenvar answered back with a 6-0 run to avoid a fourth set. 25-20 was the final score that ended the night way earlier than hoped for.
Here is a link to the stand alone Junior Varsity team story !
Jumior Varsity Volleyball 🏐 continues its hectic schedule by hosting Glenvar ahead of their day long festival on Saturday at Patrick Henry – Glade Springs
How many days until the rematch ?
Maleah Neely shares some captures !
A.S.P.N on The Hill 