By By BRIAN HAINES, Sports Writer
WILLIAMSTON — The Tigers continued to maul their postseason opponents as they topped Camden in three games Tuesday, winning 25-21, 25-17, 25-23.
Since the Atlantic Conference tournament started, Williamston (21-2) has not lost a game in the NCHSAA Class 1-A state volleyball playoffs and, with its sweep of Camden, the Tigers have now won 12 straight.
Williamston came out of the gate ready to play and opened up the game with a 7-3 lead, which came in handy down the stretch.
Once again Presley Roberson dominated the middle, and scored four of the Tigers first five points.
Roberson was clutch all day, baffling the Camden (16-10) net players with a good mix of speedy spikes and soft tips over the net.
Once the Bruins settled down, they were able to mount a comeback and pull within 12-10 of the Tigers.
With Camden on its heels, Williamston was able maintain its lead by playing flawless volleyball. The Tigers served, set and spiked well to take a 25-21 win.
The Tigers played confident volleyball throughout the match and, even when they were down, they never looked out.
In the second game Camden, who got strong play from Taylor Cannon, Kristen Whitehurst and Blair Meiggs, jumped out to a 6-2 lead.
Williamston rallied behind Roberson to go on a 5-1 run, knotting the score at 7-7. The Tigers took the lead when Jaimie Spruill, who also had a big day at the net, crushed a spike past the Bruins’ defenders to go up 8-7.
The Bruins rallied back to take a 13-11 lead, but the Tigers refused to lay down. Led by the serving of Lane Harris, Williamston rattled off 11 straight points to take a 22-13 advantage, and the game.
Rogers said he was proud of his team’s ability to bounce back.
The Tigers fell behind 10-6 in the third game, but got back on track midway through the game. A Roberson kill tied the score at 11, while a Heather Jackson ace gave Williamston its first lead at 12-11.
The Bruins would not allow the Tigers to run away from them, as the two teams never took a lead larger than two points for the rest of the game.
In the end, the Tigers balanced effort was too much for Camden. Along with Roberson, Spruill and Jackson, the Tigers got big games from Jamie Radford, Courtney Bowen, Morgan Miller and Lane Harris.
With both teams familiar with each other’s play, Rogers said the difference maker in Tuesday’s game was execution.
The Tigers will continue their postseason push on Thursday when they travel to Louisburg (21-1), a 3-0 winner over Cape Hatteras.