By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Willard, Mo. — In her 19 seasons, Willard head coach Jamalee Hancock has learned a thing or two about playing a hunch.
With the Lady Tigers tied 22-22 in the second set with Fair Grove and struggling to find momentum, Hancock called on freshman Kindall Smithson.
The hunch paid off.
Smithson, a 5-foot-5 defensive specialist, served out the match and punctuated Willard’s straight-set victory (25-21, 25-22) with a walk-off ace.
“I was really nervous,” Smithson said. “Actually, I was kind of scared to go in because my ankle hurt, but I pulled it out and was able to succeed. That was probably the most excited I’ve ever been in that game, and I usually don’t show it on the varsity because I’m nervous … but I just kind of let it all go.”
While Willard was able to overcome a dangerous Fair Grove squad led by versatile senior Alana Findley, Hancock felt the team never found its stride during the match.
A pair of kills from sophomores Maddy Bushnell and Payton Van Veen helped spark a 6-0 run midway through the first set, and the Lady Tigers were able to hold off a late Fair Grove rally to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Neither team was able to mount a significant run in the second set, which included a total of 11 ties down the stretch prior to Willard’s final burst at the end.
“We didn’t get into our system as well as I would have liked,” Hancock said. “But they held on and won. There’s still a lot of things that we’ve got to work on to be as successful as we want to be. We had a lot of bright moments, but we just couldn’t get a lot of momentum throughout the night.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE MATCH
On the subject of bright moments, Hancock was quick to point out Smithson’s ability to deliver under pressure with the match on the line.
“Kindall hasn’t been out in every match with the varsity,” Hancock said. “She’s got a tough, floater serve, and I knew she would be mentally tough down the stretch. I had all the faith in the world that she would do what she did.”
Junior Ashton Wildermuth led Willard with 25 assists, and sophomore Payton Van Veen notched ten kills on the evening. Defensively, Smithson added six digs to pace the Lady Tigers.
Hancock stressed the importance of defending Fair Grove’s attack, featuring an all-state selection in Findley and senior-laden experience throughout the lineup.
“As good as [Findley] is, we were definitely focused to double-block her the whole night,” Hancock said. “If we go one-on-one with the others that’s fine, but we really had to consistently get a solid block on her. We tried to get them out of serve-receive so they couldn’t run the middle, and we tried to serve aggressively to keep her from getting the ball.”
Fair Grove’s seniors led the Thursday-evening charge.
Findley and Sydney Hill each racked up nine kills for the Lady Eagles, while Ryah Icenhower paced the team with 13 assists. Findley and Shannon Collins tallied 10 digs each on the defensive end.
Both teams are set for tournament play this Saturday, Sep. 15. Willard (8-2) visits Springfield for the Hillcrest Invitational, while Fair Grove (9-2) travels to Ash Grove.
Varsity final: Willard – 2, Fair Grove – 0 (25-21, 25-22)
JV final: Willard – 2, Fair Grove – 0 (25-13, 25-19)
Frosh final: Willard – 2, Fair Grove – 0 (25-18, 25-9)
