South Lenoir Ends Rivalry Drought With Four-Set Win Over North Lenoir

DEEP RUN — South Lenoir’s seniors had never beaten North Lenoir.

That changed Wednesday night.

After dropping a tight opening set, the Blue Devils responded by winning three straight to defeat their longtime rival 3-1, taking the match 24-26, 25-17, 27-25, 25-23.

For North Lenoir, Camryn Jenkins finished with 15 kills. Kennedi Starkie added 12 kills and 12 blocks, Maddie Howard recorded 30 assists, Kenzie Carson had 10 digs and Abby Slaughter tallied 12 service points.

The victory was South Lenoir’s first over North Lenoir since 2022 and snapped a stretch in which the Hawks had won 15 consecutive sets in the rivalry.

“I am so proud,” South Lenoir coach Madison Harvey said. “They were really united tonight. You could see things come together. They really worked really well together. Watching them has been a beautiful process.”

North Lenoir struck first in a dramatic opening set.

South Lenoir held a 19-16 advantage before the Hawks rallied. The teams eventually reached 22-22 and 24-24 before North Lenoir scored the final two points to take the set 26-24.

Instead of allowing the finish to carry into the second set, South Lenoir responded.

The Blue Devils jumped ahead 10-6 and stretched the advantage to 16-6. North Lenoir made a run to cut the deficit to 19-16, but South Lenoir regained control and scored six of the final seven points for a 25-17 victory.

The third set became the turning point.

North Lenoir grabbed an early advantage before South Lenoir worked its way back. The Blue Devils led 21-20 and eventually moved within a point of the set at 24-20, but the Hawks refused to go away.

North Lenoir erased the deficit, eventually taking a 25-24 lead. South Lenoir answered again, scoring the final three points to escape with a 27-25 victory and take a 2-1 lead in the match.

That put the Blue Devils one set away from a win that had eluded their senior class.

Senior Lily Cole understood the significance.

“This was our last time playing against them as a senior, so coming out with the win and haven’t beaten them since 2022, it just feels great,” Cole said. “We were really united tonight and played great together.”

South Lenoir carried that mentality into the fourth.

Neither team could create significant separation as the set progressed. North Lenoir led at different points early, but South Lenoir continued answering. The teams remained within striking distance of each other deep into the set before the Blue Devils finally finished the night with a 25-23 victory.

For Cole, South Lenoir’s ability to respond to mistakes was one of the biggest differences.

“We had a saying tonight, ‘Keeping our chin up,’” Cole said. “When we made a mistake, we just kept each other up and kept playing for each other.”

The win was especially meaningful for South Lenoir seniors Zorah Lewis, Lily Cole, Addison Jones, Reese Cash and Samantha Holland, who earned their first victory over North Lenoir during their high school careers.

In one of the area’s biggest rivalries, South Lenoir finally broke through — and did it after losing the opening set and surviving two sets decided by just two points.