The O’Neal varsity volleyball team opened its conference slate Monday with a convincing three-game sweep of Cape Fear Academy in Wilmington.

The scores of the Cape Fear Independent Conference match were 25-14, 25-10 and 25-13.

Falcon coach Kendall Harper said that she could tell the girls were a little nervous to start, especially with it being the first conference game. In the end the girls communicated well and were happy with their win, she said.

Freshman Katja Ehlers led the team with four kills. Taylor Shelton, a sophomore, had two solo blocks and one assisted block. Teresa Donner, another sophomore, led the team with eight service aces, freshman Avery Schaefer had three aces, and Ehlers followed with two service aces. The Falcons recorded 15 service aces in the match.

O’Neal (2-0 overall) takes to the road again Thursday when it faces Carolina Friends in Durham. The Falcons face Cape Fear again in an Aug. 28 home match.

Patriots Win Again

The Pinecrest volleyball team made it four wins in a row to open the season by defeating Jack Britt 25-10, 25-7 and 25-13 in Fayetteville Monday evening.

Janea Williams, Felicia Painter, Mary Grace Phipps and Amber Goodwin combined for 39 kills, as the Patriots beat the Buccaneers for the second time. Coach Barbara Foxx’s squad has yet to lose a set in four outings. They were scheduled to entertain Western Harnett on Tuesday.

Williams recorded 14 kills and two blocks. Painter added 11 kills to go along with five blocks. Megan Thomas contributed 30 assists and five digs. Libero Keegan Lynch had 13 digs.

Also for the winners, Phipps and Madison Walling had eight and six digs, respectively. Katie Smith contributed eight assists and four digs.