HENRYVILLE — It was the opening round of sectionals in volleyball on Tuesday evening here in Indiana.
Brownstown Central was the first of the Jackson County schools to have a game, competing on the road Tuesday.
The Braves traveled down to Henryville to face the Hornets, dominating the matchup in three sets, 25-16, 25-5, 25-9.
The first set was back and forth with the Braves leading 12-11 at one point. Brownstown then won the set by nine points and never looked back.
Henryville could never recover, allowing the Braves to advance to the sectional semifinal round.
Between the second and third sets, Brownstown outscored Henryville 34-6 in a 40-point stretch. The run made all of the difference in the opening round of the postseason.
The Braves now improve to 19-13 for the 2023 season.
Brownstown Central head coach Jennifer Shade spoke about the win over Henryville.
“We dominated that game. It was good for us to get the first game out of the way,” Shade said. “It’s interesting to see younger kids play in their first postseason game at the new gym, but we played with energy, and I liked how we performed.”
The team will now prepare for a matchup with Paoli on Saturday at 11 a.m.
“I haven’t gotten a chance to look at them much. W will do some more research on them this week,” Shade said. “I know we will have to be on our best and play a complete game to come out with the win.”
Brownstown will eye its second straight sectional championship.
The team will be back at Henryville High School with a win on Saturday sending the Braves to the championship. The championship matchup would take place on Saturday at 6 p.m.
The team will either face Mitchell, Eastern (Pekin), Austin or Clarksville, who will all compete for the sectional crown.
The Braves coach spoke on what the team must do to achieve the feat.
“I think we have to play with energy,” Shade said. “If we come out and turn that energy into adrenaline, we can prove to be the best team here. We have to do our thing and not play the game the way the opponent wants us to play it.”