Milestones mark Hubbard's victory

The Eagles beat Liberty for their 132nd straight TAC win.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
LIBERTY -- The significance was extraordinary. The game was anything but.
Hubbard volleyball coach Chuck Montgomery won his 500th game Monday as the Eagles defeated Liberty 15-2, 15-4 at Liberty High School.
"Coach Montgomery runs a wonderful program," Liberty's first year coach Mindy Coss said. "I think it's great that he got his 500th win, although I'm not particularly excited that he did it against us."
The Eagles (19-1, 14-0) won their 132nd straight Trumbull Athletic Conference game, and the match served as an exclamation point on Montgomery's milestone.
13-point surge: Hubbard broke a 2-2 tie in the first game by scoring the final 13 points. Junior phenom Katy Jo Mroski served the final 10 points.
The Eagles were equally dominant in the second match as Hubbard jumped out to a 9-1 lead. Liberty (4-13, 3-9) scored three straight points to make it 9-4, but senior Amanda Lingenfelter served the final six points for the win.
"Liberty is getting better," Montgomery said. "They struggled a little bit last year and they're a little inexperienced. Our attitude is to work hard every match. This [Hubbard team] is a special group of kids."
Standout: Mroski had 12 points, six aces, five kills and two blocks for Hubbard.
Amy Falhammer, Cortney Hoch and Nyelia Page each had three kills. Jessica Forrester and Lingenfelter each had five digs and Nicole Pringle and Traci Hassell each had nine assists.
For Liberty, senior Sarah Walters had nine assists and a kill, junior Becki Bruno had three spikes, and senior Farrah Rivello had three spikes and one block.
"I told my team before the game that this could be the biggest upset of the year," Coss said. "We want to be on [Hubbard's] competitive level.
"Montgomery attracts great players and great talent and he had to start somewhere. My team wants to be where Hubbard is and we will be someday."