MADISON – Third-seeded Mingo Central saw its season come to an end Tuesday evening as top-seeded Wayne defeated the Miners in straight sets in the Class AA Region IV Section II tournament at Scott High School.
Using a series of long runs, Wayne defeated Mingo Central, 25-17, 25-9 and 25-13 to advance in the sectional tournament and guarantee itself a berth in Saturday’s Region 4 championship at Winfield High School.
Mingo Central had defeated Logan and Chapmanville in a pair of elimination games Monday night to advance in the sectional tournament, but the Miners fell behind early and were unable to establish any momentum.
“I think we may have been mentally and physically tired,” Mingo Central coach Amanda Lovern said. “We played two games last night and played a game with Scott that went five sets Saturday.”
Wayne led 9-5 in the first set but used a 9-0 run to take control of the first set to win going away, 25-17. The Pioneers started fast in the second set, jumping out to a 17-3 lead on its way to easy 25-9 second set victory. In the third, Mingo was able to hang with Wayne and trailed 12-9, but Wayne sophomore Gabby Elliott fueled a 7-0 run with four aces to give the Pioneers a 19-9 advantage. From there Wayne coasted and finished off a straight set victory with a 25-13 third set win.
“Wayne is great, they are disciplined, and they are good,” Lovern said. “We came out real flat, but tried to battle back.”
“We would get to around 10-11 points and be with them, but they (Wayne) got a couple of good hits and took the momentum back.”
The loss ended Mingo Central’s season at 15-13. The Miners, who played just seven games last season due to COVID-19 restrictions, were able to play an entire schedule this season and remain injury free.
“We had a good time and it’s all about making memories with each other and having fun,” Lovern said. “It does come down to wins and losses, but at the end of the day they will remember the fun they had.”
