CRUSADERS DOWN SUMMIT IN 2-0 SWEEPS IN JV AND VARSITY LEVELS

The Crusaders were looking to avenge an earlier loss Summit at the JV level while Varsity was looking to improve on its performance against the Crusaders last match when GL created 17 aces against the Hilltoppers.

Summit´s JV dropped a 2-0 decision to GL by 25-21 and 25-23 scores but the game turned on a couple of GL runs that were fueled by Summit errors.  The match was the typical Crusader - Hilltopper matchup with both teams trading points early and seemingly not able to get a run going.  Summit held a slight lead at 9-7 but the Crusaders stormed back in rotation 6 with a 6-0 run that get them the lead at 13-9.  Sarah Noa got SHS back in it with 2 quick service points and the Hilltoppers looked to have righted the ship with the score 11-13.  That feeling was short lived as the home team ran off another 4 points to extend its lead to a seemingly insurmountable 17-11 lead.

With GL leading 21-16 due to inopportune hitting errors by the Top, Victoria Macarthur stepped up and delivered from the service line 3 consecutive tough serves that forced the GL into errors get Summit to within 2 at 19-21.  But that was about all Summit could muster as the Crusaders finished on a 4-2 run which saw SHS unable to but the ball down when it needed, thus ending set 1 21-25.

Set 2 began ominously enough for the Top as the squad trailed by 4-10 scored a mere 4 rotations into set 2.  Rebekah Thompson ripped an ace down the middle of the GL serve receive and got another 2 points to get SHS back into it at 10-7  but the Maroon and White were still finding it very difficult to score on offense and their usual ace production was justifiably down against a better opponent.

Still trailing 9-13 after 7 rotations,  Summit got a boost when Hope Basaman scored on 4 swings from the service line (1 ace) to get Summit knotted up at 13.  But GL responded in a big way as they had done the entire match, relying on great defense and Hilltopper errors to go on a 9-4 run over the next couple of rotations to jump to a 22-17 lead.

It all seemed academic at that point, Summit couldn´t generate the aces it needed and the offense could not score consistently to make up for that production do it seemed to be all but over... until a few GL hitting errors and key serving from Jordan Parella including an ace got the Top to within 1 at 22-23.  Unfortunately, SHS committed another unforced error and the Maroon and White finally ran out of time and lost the set and match 23-25.

Sabrina Ippolito had 3 kills in the loss along with Eva Oberhuber who also added a block.  Jackie Szabados held the fort defensively with 5 digs and also added a kill to the team total.  Catherine Eldridge stormed back in the 2nd set after a disappointing first to hit for 2 kills, earn a block and dig up one ball  to help that late Summit run.  Jordan Parella ran an efficient enough offense dishing out 10 assists and adding a kill, an ace and 2 digs to the cause.  In both sets, late Hilltopper runs masked what was inconsistent play from the the team, particularly from the front line in the beginning phases of the match that saw SHS trailing badly before responding late.

CRUSADERS GET SEASON SWEEP OF SHS DESPITE MUCH IMPROVED PASSING BY THE TOP

There isn´t much to add to a blog entry when the opponent out-kills you 18-5 in the match in a 25-10, 25-12 loss.  Summit trailed 9-3 after 2 rotations and held their own through their serve in rotation 5 at 7-12 but the relentless GL serving pressure broke down the passing  attack and therefore the offense was non-existent.  Summit had given up 17 aces in their first match up, in today´s matchup, in set one alone, the Top had yielded 8.

But the team rallied in set 2 and led by Captain Kiera Stocks, the squad gave up only 2 more aces and gave the Hilltoppers a chance to get some swings.

How effective was the Summit serving attack?  It matched the GL ace output in the second set with 2 aces.

How effective was the Summit reception game?  It actually rated higher than GL in set 2 with a 1.86 rating to the Crusaders´ 1.73.    And it provided the Maroon and White with 22 attack opportunities, including 7 from transition defense after key digs.

Kiera Stocks passed at a 2.0 rating, passing safely on 12/13 reception attempts while also leading the team in digs with 5.  Despite a shaky start, Sarah Brennan ended up passing safely in 10/12 attempts (7/7 in set 2).

Abby Doyle, Meghan Tarashuk, Gabbie Guidetti and Kasey Walsh all hit for 1 ace in the match and Tarashuk was especially effective, rating a 3.25 on her service attempts while Stocks and Guidetti rated at a 2.00.

Summit will try to get back to .500 with a win at Payne Tech tomorrow on both JV and V level.