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The Yellow Jackets huddle on the court during their five-game match against Forest Park. Click on the "Photos" link above for more pictures from the match.
Prince William County Content Editor
pfrommelt@digitalsports.com
Click on the "Photos" and "Videos" links above for video highlights and photos from the game.
Considering the tradition that the Osbourn Park and Forest Park volleyball teams carry around, Monday evening's non-district match-up featuring two of Prince William County's volleyball powerhouses didn't disappoint. The Bruins, winners of seven-consecutive Cardinal District titles, are currently tied for the lead in the Cardinal, while the Yellow Jackets, winners of seven Cedar Run titles since 1996, including three-straight titles, have already grabbed the No. 3 seed in the Cedar Run.
Monday night's game had no bearing on each team's district rankings, but that didn't mean that the Bruins and Yellow Jackets didn't have anything on the line.
"It was an emotional game going on because they all know each other and play with each other," said OP head coach Kate Southcott, who, as co-director of Clash Volleyball Club, has coached almost every girl on the floor away from high school. "They all know each other’s tendencies. They know what each other is good at. It does become kind of emotional. It is a big roller-coaster when it comes to volleyball and emotion and playing people that you would rather have on your side of the court."
That roller-coaster lasted a full five games, with Osbourn Park eventually coming out on top, 3-2 (14-25, 25-15, 25-23, 28,30, 15-12).
"This is just a big rivalry. It has been here for a long time and it will be," said Forest Park head coach Jonathan Bukva.
While the match's ending was as dramatic as they come, the first two games were pretty lopsided. Behind Rachel (10 kills) and Kellie Goss (17 kills, 11 blocks), the Bruins cruised to a 25-14 victory — a game in which they led 23-9 — and the Yellow Jackets responded with a 25-15 victory in the second game.
"It is just about believing in yourself and in game one, we didn’t and in game two, they didn’t," said Southcott. "Games three, four and five — everybody put their game together."
Led by middle blocker Tori Price (18 kils, 4 blocks) and outside hitter Erikka Davis (9 kills, 6 aces), the Yellow Jackets eked out a 25-23 victory in game three to take a 2-1 advantage. Osbourn Park looked to put things away in the fourth game, leading throughout and taking a 23-20 lead late. Forest Park, however, had different plans.
"They finally realized that we are Forest Park and they weren’t ready to roll over yet," said Bukva.
The Bruins faced game-point six times during the game, each time fighting off elimination before grabbling three-consecutive late points to win 30-28.
"It showed a lot of heart, being down," said Bukva.
After the letdown in game four, Southcott talked with her squad before the deciding next game.
"Take the emotion out. Player for player, you are a better team," Southcott said. "We can really beat them if you just believe it."
The Jackets did just that, taking the deciding game, 15-12, to end their regular season with a motivation-building win.
While the Yellow Jackets move on to the Cedar Run District tournament Tuesday night, Forest Park still has two more games on their district schedule and a possible one-game playoff with Woodbridge for the top seed in the district tournament.
"This is one match that you never want to lose just because who it is," said Bukva. "No loss is a good loss but we will survive losing this one."
Click on the "Photos" and "Videos" links above for video highlights and photos from the game.
Considering the tradition that the Osbourn Park and Forest Park volleyball teams carry around, Monday evening's non-district match-up featuring two of Prince William County's volleyball powerhouses didn't disappoint. The Bruins, winners of seven-consecutive Cardinal District titles, are currently tied for the lead in the Cardinal, while the Yellow Jackets, winners of seven Cedar Run titles since 1996, including three-straight titles, have already grabbed the No. 3 seed in the Cedar Run.
Monday night's game had no bearing on each team's district rankings, but that didn't mean that the Bruins and Yellow Jackets didn't have anything on the line.
"It was an emotional game going on because they all know each other and play with each other," said OP head coach Kate Southcott, who, as co-director of Clash Volleyball Club, has coached almost every girl on the floor away from high school. "They all know each other’s tendencies. They know what each other is good at. It does become kind of emotional. It is a big roller-coaster when it comes to volleyball and emotion and playing people that you would rather have on your side of the court."
That roller-coaster lasted a full five games, with Osbourn Park eventually coming out on top, 3-2 (14-25, 25-15, 25-23, 28,30, 15-12).
"This is just a big rivalry. It has been here for a long time and it will be," said Forest Park head coach Jonathan Bukva.
While the match's ending was as dramatic as they come, the first two games were pretty lopsided. Behind Rachel (10 kills) and Kellie Goss (17 kills, 11 blocks), the Bruins cruised to a 25-14 victory — a game in which they led 23-9 — and the Yellow Jackets responded with a 25-15 victory in the second game.
"It is just about believing in yourself and in game one, we didn’t and in game two, they didn’t," said Southcott. "Games three, four and five — everybody put their game together."
Led by middle blocker Tori Price (18 kils, 4 blocks) and outside hitter Erikka Davis (9 kills, 6 aces), the Yellow Jackets eked out a 25-23 victory in game three to take a 2-1 advantage. Osbourn Park looked to put things away in the fourth game, leading throughout and taking a 23-20 lead late. Forest Park, however, had different plans.
"They finally realized that we are Forest Park and they weren’t ready to roll over yet," said Bukva.
The Bruins faced game-point six times during the game, each time fighting off elimination before grabbling three-consecutive late points to win 30-28.
"It showed a lot of heart, being down," said Bukva.
After the letdown in game four, Southcott talked with her squad before the deciding next game.
"Take the emotion out. Player for player, you are a better team," Southcott said. "We can really beat them if you just believe it."
The Jackets did just that, taking the deciding game, 15-12, to end their regular season with a motivation-building win.
While the Yellow Jackets move on to the Cedar Run District tournament Tuesday night, Forest Park still has two more games on their district schedule and a possible one-game playoff with Woodbridge for the top seed in the district tournament.
"This is one match that you never want to lose just because who it is," said Bukva. "No loss is a good loss but we will survive losing this one."
