Forest powers past Vanguard in volleyball

Having to play an away match in a hostile and loud environment might intimidate some teams. Not the Forest volleyball team, which welcomed the challenge of taking on rival Vanguard in the Knights’ cozy and packed gymnasium.

Forest junior Kyndall Seek and sophomore Lexie Quash each had a match-high 10 kills to lead the Wildcats to a sweep of a young Vanguard squad by scores of 25-13, 25-7 and 25-13 on Thursday night.

The win improved Class 7A Forest to 6-8 on the season.

“It was a good team win and this is one of the best volleyball rivalries in the state,” Wildcats coach Jimmy Collins said. “It was loud in here and we came out a little tight and made some early errors but finished the first set really strong. From then on, we played really well. Kyndall and Lexi had big nights. Lexi has always been a middle hitter but with our injuries this year she moved to outside hitter and is playing really well and I’m very proud of her.”

The loss dropped Class 5A Vanguard, which won state volleyball championships in 2012 and 2018, to 3-9 overall.

“We are a fairly young team,” said first-year Knights coach Douwyna Montalvo. “We have a lot of freshmen and sophomores who are learning and improving with each match they play. We don’t have much height but the girls hustle and play hard all the way until the last point. We want to keep working hard and build the program back up.”

The first set was the most competitive with Vanguard playing on even terms with Forest in the early going. Vanguard outside hitter senior Sarah Beville, who had a team-high seven kills, scored a pair of points with well-placed spikes to tie the score at 8.

Forest proceeded to go on a 16-5 run sparked by strong serving by senior Avery O’Cull and numerous spikes by Seek and Quash against the smaller Vanguard front line. Seek drilled a cross-court kill shot to seal the first set for the Wildcats.

Vanguard, a scrappy squad, struggled with the taller Forest front line in the second set as Seek had three kills and freshman Addison Owens added three service aces as the Wildcats stormed out to a 12-1 advantage.

Vanguard played hard and there were several long rallies, but Forest continued to dominate at the net and eased to the second-set victory.

The Knights came out fired up for the third set and tied the score at 4 after a spike by freshman Ava Light and a block by senior Lillian Hart.

Forest took command as juniors Ava Robinson and Mae Owen had kills and Vanguard committed several miscues. The Wildcats took a 17-7 lead on a beautiful cross-court spike by Quash.

Fittingly, the match ended on a service ace by Seek for a final score of 25-13.

“I know Vanguard is a little down this year but there is nothing like this rivalry,” coach Collins said. “The two fan bases and the students make this special. It’s an honor to be able to play in this environment.”

Forest, which has played a very tough schedule to prepare for the postseason, is back in action on Monday night with a home match against Matanzas High School (Palm Coast).

“We’ve played one of the toughest schedules in the state,” coach Collins said. “Our goal is to get better every day.”

Vanguard, which had a two-match win streak snapped, is at West Port on Tuesday night.