By Rob Tate
SportCast Media
Another night, another playoff-type matchup for the Oak Ridge volleyball team.
This time, it was against a team they could possibly play in the playoffs.
While observing their bye in District 13-6A, Oak Ridge beat Klein Cain in five sets Friday night in non-district play.
It was the third straight win for the War Eagles (26-6), who have their biggest match to date coming on Tuesday.
Klein Cain (9-22) has some work to do in District 15-6A in order to get back into playoff contention, but put up a battle in this one. The Hurricanes were swept by Oak Ridge last month in a tournament at Huntsville.
Klein Cain had Oak Ridge two sets to one after three before the War Eagles locked down on the road to pull out the win.
It was another huge night for junior Gaby Santiago, who totaled a double-double with a team-high 19 kills and a co-team-high of 25 digs. Santiago was 35.8% on kill attempts with a .302 hitting percentage.
Senior Bradi Rhodes also contributed a double-double with a co-team-high 28 assists and 10 digs.
Junior Leila Ceaser had 14 kills and 25 digs to tie Santiago in that department and provide another double-double for the War Eagles.
One more double-double? That was junior Samantha Daley with 28 assists and 11 digs.
Micah Rusher, a sophomore, finished with nine kills and six blocks.
Also reaching double-digit digs was sophomore Brooklyn McQueary with 16 while junior Riley Dube added eight digs.
Oak Ridge totaled 13 aces as a team, led by Ceaser with five.
Oak Ridge takes to the road to play rival Grand Oaks (25-6), the No. 8 state-ranked team in Class 6A and the defending state champions.
