Caldwell Volleyball:Rolling into the second half of the season!

Caldwell Volleyball: Rolling into the second half of the season!
Special report for Greensboro Sports by Chris Black

In off the court news: The state association for private schools, NCISAA, announced a new spectator attendance policy. Effective Oct. 1, parents of senior players for the home team only are now allowed to attend matches. Prior to entering the gym, each parent must pass a health screening protocol, wear a face covering, and maintain social distance from other spectators, athletes, and coaches. Senior parents were happy to be back in the gym cheering on their favorite teams and it helps make for a better atmosphere than the eerily quiet gyms of matches where no spectators were allowed to attend.

Parents of non-seniors are still relying on video feeds to watch their teams play. The experience with video feeds so far has been spotty at best. With public schools starting their ramp up to matches in November, it is recommended that backup plans be in place to help alleviate some of the parent and fan frustration.

Caldwell volleyball entered the biggest week of the season so far and managed to come out unscathed: three conference matchups and a tri-match with consistently strong programs Asheville Christian and Coastal Christian.

Tuesday brought a rivalry match with Westchester Country Day to the Eagles home court. Caldwell rolls over a developing Wildcats team in straight sets to claim the victory. Statistical leaders for Caldwell were: Madison Bozarth (18 digs / 7 aces), Gabby Black (14 kills / 7 aces), Lindsey MacDiarmid (9 kills), and Christina Phillips (28 assists / 6 aces).

The Eagles turned back conference foe Forsyth Country Day on Thursday in a competitive match with a 25–18, 25–11, 25-23 straight set win. Another well rounded team effort for Caldwell to claim the victory: Christina Phillips (28 assists / 6 aces), Gabby Black (13 kills / 11 digs), Lindsey MacDiarmid (6 kills), Delany Gilboy (5 kills), Elizabeth Jones (5 kills), and Madison Bozarth (20 digs, 4 aces).

In a quick turnaround, Caldwell traveled to Forsyth Country Day on Friday for the rematch. During warmups, one of the stronger Furies players twisted her ankle and was unable to compete in the match. The Eagles send best wishes to her for a speedy recovery and hope she is able to be back on the court soon. Caldwell wasted no time in jumping out to a big lead in the first set and cruised to the 3 set victory. Gabby Black (18 kills) and Lindsey MacDiarmid (14 kills) led the attack for the Eagles. Elizabeth Jones finished with 3 kills and 4 aces. Christina Phillips accounted for 33 assists and Madison Bozarth notched 15 digs.

Saturday saw the Eagles host top ten ranked Asheville Christian and consistently strong Coastal Christian here in Greensboro for a tri-match. With the shortened regular season this year due to Covid-19 , coaches for all 3 programs were seeking out quality competition to test their programs as the ramp up for state playoffs begins. In the first match of the day, Caldwell dropped the first set to Asheville in extra points 27 – 25 before roaring back to take the next 3 sets and claim the victory. Against Coastal Christian, Caldwell took the tightly contested first set 25 – 21, and then controlled the next 2 sets to win their second match of the day.

The Eagles have a well deserved break until Oct. 8 when they return to the court to face Piedmont Classical.

Courtesy of Chris Black