By Ron Smith
September 28, 2018
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Samantha Neely made a big adjustment in tonight's Golden State Athletic Conference volleyball match to help #11 Westmont (12-4, 3-3 GSAC) sweep William Jessup (8-9, 3-4) by scores of 25-10, 25-18 and 25-17.
 
At the beginning of the season, head coach Patti Cook anticipated that Neely, a right side hitter, might see some time on the opposite pin and consequently listed her on the roster as both a right side and outside hitter. However, due to the injury that sidelined Cassidy Rea for several weeks, Neely's talents were needed on the right side and so she stayed put – until this week.
 
On Saturday night, in a match at Hope International, two-time All-American Libby Dahlberg turned an ankle in the fourth set. Medical examinations determined she had suffered a high-ankle sprain and would need to be sidelined for a few weeks.
 
The injury to Dahlberg produced a big hole in the Warriors' front line and left Cook with some decisions to make. Earlier this week, Cook informed Neely it was time to make a move – not to the outside hitter position earlier anticipated, but to middle blocker.
 
"Putting Sam in the middle was an unknown," acknowledged Cook after the game. "I wasn't sure how we would respond (as a team) and how exactly that would work."
 
It worked out very well. Neely led the team with 11 kills and produced a .588 attack percentage, committing just one attack error.
 
"Sam did a phenomenal job and everyone could feel the flow on the court," said Cook. "I loved watching Sam be dominant in the middle just as she has been from the right side. It attests to the athlete she is and the versatility she has."
 
Another change for the Warriors was converting from a two-setter offense to a single-setter approach run by Amy Buffham.
 
"Amy did a great job of staying steady," said Cook. "She was also a threat herself with opportunities to dunk that kept the blockers respecting her."
 
Buffham tallied 28 assists in the three sets and had three kills.
 
Rea also had a strong performance, tallying 10 kills without an error to post a .667 attack percentage.
 
"It has been great to have Cassidy back and fully healthy," said Cook. "She is able to rip and swing away. It was fun to see her power through a triple block when she ran a play in the middle."
 
"I was pleased with our performance tonight," continued the coach. "We needed this game to get back our confidence and morale after losing three games in a row and losing Libby."
 
The Warriors have a short turnaround as they play again tomorrow at noon when they host the Oaks of Menlo.