Providing a steady force throughout the 12th annual Ooltewah "pink out" volleyball match, Soddy-Daisy's Allie Lemacks took her game to another level.
Lemacks, a senior middle blocker for the Lady Trojans, provided fiery play in Tuesday's 3-1 road victory in which players, coaches and fans supported the fight against breast cancer.
"This match brought everyone together," said Lemacks, who finished with a team-high 13 kills and a trio of aces and blocks. "It really hits deep for me because my aunt had breast cancer. One of my teammates had a sister who had cancer. We all have had someone close to us have to fight cancer, and it meant a lot to us to come out and play for a strong cause."
Soddy-Daisy won the nonregion battle between a mother and daughter coaching duo by the scores of 25-17, 26-24, 21-25, 25-20.
The Lady Trojans' Alyx Howell slammed the ball seemingly wherever she wanted to with authority in the first set as Hope Ingle found the hot hand for seven kills.
The Lady Trojans (7-13) kept things rolling as Sydney Seeger provided stellar service to score the first 13 points, but Ooltewah showed grit fighting back to take a 24-23 lead. However, Lemacks stepped up with back-to-back kills to give her team a two-set lead.
"Allie was on fire tonight and she has been working all season to get to this level," Soddy-Daisy coach Libby Peigen said. "She was hitting the ball hard, she was aggressive and went up for the blocks with a purpose. Everything she did tonight was 120%."
The Lady Owls (6-13) did not go quietly as senior leader Daisja Knox and Kaylee Jarnagan combined for 23 kills and the defensive efforts improved against big hitters.
After losing twice to begin a family rivalry, Libby Peigen has won the past three matchups against her mom and former coach Elaine Peigen.
"My mom is my best friend. I call her like 70 times a day and tell her everything," Libby Peigen said. "I knew her team would battle back. She doesn't give up easily, and her players don't, either. It was nice to see our girls be challenged and overcome some adversity, and I think Ooltewah grew as well tonight."
Soddy-Daisy finished with 17 aces, while Javaria Smith led all with 30 digs and Ingle had 34 assists to go with five kills and 18 digs.
Ooltewah's Caty Hughes had five blocks, while Knox led all with 15 kills.
Proceeds of the match went to the MaryEllen Locher Foundation, which has raised $852,000 of scholarship money the past 17 years that has been given to students whose families have been affected by breast cancer.
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @PMacCoon.