Whenever Choctaw and Fort Walton Beach meet on the volleyball court, everything gets thrown out the window.
- Thursday night at the Tee Pee was no exception, as Choctaw swept Fort Walton Beach (25-22, 25-19, 25-15) to complete a season sweep of its crosstown rival. The Lady Indians didn’t allow the Lady Vikings to win a single set in two meetings this year, with the first matchup on Aug. 27 also ending in a Choctaw sweep.
However…it didn’t matter that Choctaw entered as an established Class 4A state title contender while Fort Walton Beach was looking for a statement win to officially enter the playoff conversation. It didn’t matter that the Lady Indians were missing several players, headlined by Tishelle Bowles. And it didn’t matter that both teams traded wild runs throughout the night.
Once again, “The Game” reigned supreme over Panhandle volleyball.
The Lady Vikings came out firing in the first set, racing to a 7-2 lead. But Choctaw chipped away, fueled largely by Janyia Brown, and took its first lead at 15-14 on a Callie Cotton ace. The teams traded blows from there, with Fort Walton Beach tying the set twice, but Brown answered each time. A Brown kill sparked a three-point Choctaw run that created separation, and the Lady Indians held on to close out the set 25-22.
The second set followed a similar pattern of momentum swings. An Adelle Howdsen block put Fort Walton Beach on top early, but a Khloe Brockett block ignited a 4-0 Lady Indians run. Howdsen helped steady the Lady Vikings briefly before a wayward serve ended the short rally.
Both teams continued exchanging punches until a Brown block sparked another 4-0 Choctaw push. Fort Walton Beach answered with a 4-0 run of its own off an Annabeth Bexley error, but a Brown ace stopped the bleeding and swung momentum back Choctaw’s way. A Zaire Porter block briefly sparked another Fort Walton Beach push, but it was Bexley who delivered the final blow, with her block sealing the 25-19 second-set victory and giving the Lady Indians a 2-0 advantage.
Choctaw took control in the third set. After the teams exchanged points early and a Mya Divens block sparked a 3-0 Fort Walton Beach run, the Lady Indians clawed back to tie it. The teams continued trading points until a Mikah Bandy kill sparked a Choctaw run that leveled the set, and a Brinika Rutledge kill gave the Lady Indians the lead.
- From there, a Brockett kill ignited a 6-0 Choctaw rally that put the match out of reach. Bexley once again delivered the finishing blow to get the Lady Indians to 25 and clinch the sweep.
Choctaw Head Coach Andy Faulkner credited his players for stepping up with the roster shorthanded.
“We have some kids who are out with injuries. We don’t ever make excuses, it’s next man up,” Faulkner said. “But Khloe Brockett, Annabeth Bexley, Janyia Brown, those three really have to get a lot more sets than they did in the past until we get some of those injured players back. I was really proud of how they worked as a team to overcome adversity the past couple games.”
Bexley and Brockett echoed those sentiments.
“We have something to prove, so we all came out wanting to win,” Bexley said. “Our motto before every game is confidence and swagger, so we brought that into the game.”
“We do have a lot of players out,” Brockett added. “There were doubts that we were going to win since we were missing a lot of our better players, but we really stepped up today.”
Choctaw (9-4) hosts South Walton on Monday.
Fort Walton Beach (9-6) travels to Walton on Tuesday.
