by Aaron Garcia
The Charlotte Latin Hawks: 2010 N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association volleyball champions
Talk about a dynasty.
On Oct. 30, Charlotte Latin’s volleyball team defeated Cary Academy, 3-1, to win its seventh consecutive N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 3A championship. The Hawks (31-3) lost the first game 24-26 but rebounded to take the next three by scores of 25-16, 25-22 and 25-14.
“It was hard-earned, and I think the kids came through in the end,” longtime Hawks coach Suzie Pignetti said. “They probably played their best match of the season at the end. It made all the hard work worthwhile.”
Pignetti called outside hitter Eve Davis’ performance “superb” after the sophomore tallied a career-high 30 kills. Senior setter Delaney Dalton also shined, notching a career-high 43 assists. Kellie Williams, Charlotte Magee and Emma Price also contributed with 10, six and five kills, respectively.
Defensively, the Hawks were stout, totaling 116 digs on the day. Libero Morgan Henry led the way with 27 digs, followed by Ashley Finke (17) and Davis (14).
“Defensively, we were hitting all cylinders,” Pignetti said. “Offensively, we got stronger as the match went on.
“One of the things our team does really well is fight. I think that sets us apart because we’ve outlasted a lot of teams in the fourth and fifth sets.”
Latin’s roster also included Shema’n Fullwood, Mattie Gainer, Eliza Karp, Amma Okwara, Dominique Pearson, Ellison Peters, Madison Sullivan and Emily Usher.
For Pignetti, beating Cary Academy in the finals was fitting after the Chargers pushed the Hawks to five games last year before yielding to Charlotte Latin.
“Going into it, they expected to see us, and we expected to see them,” said Pignetti. “It didn’t really scare us. We respected them so much that it made us really want to play harder, because we knew we’d have to.”
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