PINETOWN — Two weeks ago, the Northside volleyball team was fresh off two consecutive heartbreaking, five-game losses to two conference foes — Pamlico County and East Carteret, the favorite to take the Coastal Plains Conference. Whether technical inconsistency or endurance was to blame, the Panthers held the lead in each match, only to lose it in down the stretch, dropping them to 0-2 in CPC play.

Fast forward 14 days and the Panthers are a new team — energetic, confident, efficient and consistent, all the traits a coach looks for in her players. And most of all, they’re still willing to learn with the second half of conference play on the horizon.

Since the loss to Pamlico County on Sept. 8, Northside is 4-0 with match wins over Bear Grass, Jones Senior, Lejeune and Southside, a dominant 3-0 (25-10, 25-7, 25-20) shutout on Tuesday. During that stretch, the Panthers, who now sit second in the standings, have dropped just one game.

“I think we feel much more confident entering the second half (of conference play) than we did in the beginning,” said head coach Kayla Maddox. “I think if we can hold this momentum then we can continue to see this success.

“What I saw that I think won it for us tonight (against Southside) was our hustle. I tell them that all the time and they’ve gotten better, but this match they just wanted it. Rarely did the ball hit the ground on an attack. Just well played volleyball all around.”

Through the winning streak, the constants have been setter Kendall Alligood, who finished with a game-high 14 assists on Tuesday, and Rachel Lang, the Panthers’ top middle hitter who notched nine kills against the Seahawks. But unlike earlier in the year, it’s been the supporting cast around them that has turned the Panthers into a viable threat to take the conference title.

Outside hitters Savannah Slade and Sarah Rhem have improved with each match, while the defense of Tiffany Oliver and Meredith Boyd continues to be one of the strengths of this Northside team. But in preparation for a tough slate of games ahead, Maddox is making adjustments accordingly.

“In practice, we’ve been working a lot of on our offense, receiving the ball then turning that into something — an aggressive mentality, looking to attack every time instead of being satisfied with just getting it over the net,” she said. “I’ve also been trying to shake up my lineup to give teams different looks. I’m impressed that my girls don’t let that rattle them. If I throw a new girl in there or put her in a different spot, they roll with it.”

After a 3-2 loss in the CPC opener in Beaufort, the Panthers get another crack against the first-place Mariners (7-4, 5-0 CPC) on Tuesday before matching up against the Hurricanes (4-7, 2-2 CPC) on Oct. 1.

“I have a lot more confidence in their ability to stay with them through the entire match and I think they have more confidence in themselves now,” Maddox said. “They have gotten over any theories they may have that we lost six seniors and that means we won’t have a good season. They have forgotten that and are just focused on what they can do to be successful moving forward.”