Creek opens with win over North

Fourth-ranked Deer Creek opened their Edmond schedule with a straight-set win over No. 5 Edmond North: 25-18, 26-24, 25-19. The pairing was this season’s first between the two top-five ranked Edmond teams, and the first Edmond rival Deer Creek has seen this season. “It feels good,” Head Coach Lisa Polcovich said of the win. “The objective was to come in and play our game, play some clean volleyball and attack.” They did just that, with the match hinging on a crucial second set. Creek ran out to a seven-point lead, but North ran it back. With junior Kamryn Bacus at the serve, the Lady Huskies ran six straight scores courtesy of two Bacus aces, and kills from Bacus and Jadah Platt. Seconds later, a Morgan Georke ace gave North a double-set-point try. During that set-point rally North tried to go off cadence, opting to send a push across the net instead of setting for a traditional kill attempt. Had it worked, North would have taken the second set and serious momentum. But, Deer Creek’s Teagan Polcovich read the move like a book — taking to the air almost before the ball ever even reached the setter’s hands — and the junior blocked the try, breaking North’s first set point. Polcovich reading the move and recording the block was something she garnished from her extensive volleyball history, according to her head coach. “The more competitive levels you play, you get better at reading,” Lisa Polcovich said after the match. “And, honestly, the game is actually played on the opposite side of the net. The better your team can read (the opponent), the better you’re going to play.” Polcovich then killed an attack to tie the set, before a North attacking error and a block from Creek’s Trinity Sargent sealed the frame 26-24. Sargent, on the front lines alongside Maicee Morgan and Rylie Farr, gave North troubles defensively in the win. The three combined with a fast moving Creek offense to keep the rival Lady Huskies on the back foot for the majority of Thursday’s meeting. “Trinity has been doing a great job for us,” Lisa Polcovich said. “She’s been blocking and running the quick for us. We’re glad she’s stepped us this year.” Sargent was tasked with filling the shoes of last season’s outgoing senior Lauren Anthony. According to her head coach, the team has focused time into running a quicker attack to put pressure on their opponents, allowing Sargent to command Creek’s defensive battles at the net more freely. “We’ve been working a lot on a on a quicker offense,” Lisa Polcovich said. “And, as long as our passing is on we can actually do that.” Rylie Farr led Creek in kills on Thursday, tallying seven scores with four in the final set. Maicee Morgan added another four in set three, too, pushing her total to six overall. Teagan Polcovich scored six kills in the win, and Haley Houk had an influential three kills in the night’s first set. North’s Kamryn Bacus led all hitters, though, with eight scores and four serving aces. Jadah Platt added another seven and Haylee Stokes and Lily DeGrace tallied three kills in the second and third set, respectively. With every Edmond match this season serving as a potential state championship preview, Thursday’s rivalry match also served as a litmus test for next week’s Heather Harkness Memorial Tournament. Held at Santa Fe, all four of Edmond’s 6A volleyball teams are found on the bracket. Similarly, all four of Edmond’s 6A teams can be found in the top-5 of the OSSAA’s state volleyball rankings, meaning this year’s Harkness could be one of the most tightly contested tournaments this season.

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Edmond North High School Athletics

CREEK OPENS WITH WIN OVER NORTH

AARON ALBERTSON

Edmond Sun | 8/31/2018

PHOTO CREDIT: Drew Harmon