Aiken High's volleyball season ends in Lower State semifinals

Aiken High School's magical season came to a close Tuesday night, as it lost a five-set heartbreaker on its home floor to White Knoll High School in the Class AAAA Lower State semifinals.

Aiken struck first, winning a seesaw first set 25-22, with neither team holding momentum for very long. A quick scoring run gave Aiken a 20-14 lead, but White Knoll scored seven of the next eight points to close within 22-21. The teams traded service errors, then a Kiki Hennessey kill ended the set.

The Hornets wasted no time getting on the board in the second set, charging out to an early 10-4 lead. White Knoll fought back and took a 12-11 lead, and the teams traded points until the set was tied at 20. Four consecutive White Knoll points gave the Timberwolves a 24-20 advantage. The Hornets rallied, coming within one point of tying the set, but a service error gave White Knoll the 25-23 win. The set featured eight ties and six lead changes.

Aiken appeared to have figured White Knoll out in the third set, once again grabbing the early momentum, but this time it didn't let it go. The Hornets came out hot, taking a 6-1 lead and forcing an early White Knoll timeout. The Timberwolves would never get within four points, and a Hennessey kill slammed the door for a 25-14 set win.

The fourth set looked like it was going to follow the example set by the first and second, with nine ties, the last at 15-15. From there, it was all White Knoll, as the Timberwolves scored 10 of the last 13 points to win 25-18 and force a fifth set.

Two marathon points kicked off the deciding fifth set, with Aiken taking both for a 2-0 lead. White Knoll quickly tied the score, and two consecutive points by the Hornets put it back in front by two. Unfortunately for the Hornets, that would be the last time they led, as White Knoll dominated the remainder of the fifth set, winning 15-8 and advancing to the Lower State Finals.

"I don't know. The ball didn't bounce our way," Aiken coach Malynda Young said. "We were the better team. We should have won, but we didn't. So we'll live with it and go for next year.

"It's been an awesome season. These girls have worked hard and come back from some big deficits and they've played well," Young continued. "They've been a team and a family, and we've had an absolutely fabulous year. Right now, this is just such a letdown for them, and it just breaks my heart. They were awesome. They're a great team. I love them to death."

Kiki Hennessey finished with 15 kills and four blocks for Aiken, while Jenni Law had 13 kills and eight blocks. Meredith Clemmens tallied 35 assists and eight blocks, and Jessica Ray had nine kills and four blocks.

Aiken finished the year 25-3.

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