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Canfield captures volleyball title
By Greg Gulas
BOARDMAN
After losing last year’s Division II district title in three sets to Canfield, the Salem High volleyball team had all the motivation it needed for Thursday’s rematch at Boardman High.
The Quakers will have that much more motivation next year after falling short to the Cardinals on Thursday.
The Quakers stunned the Cardinals in the first game, 25-21. The Cards responded with three straight wins (25-20, 25-18, 25-18).
“When we played Salem in a tri-match back on Sept. 8, they also caught us in the first game,” Cardinals coach John Tokash said. “They are an excellent club with plenty of talent.
“To follow up last year’s district title with another one this year is really a great accomplishment.”
In the first game, Canfield jumped out to a 9-6 advantage. With the score knotted 20-20, the Quakers’ Camrin Costal reeled off three of Salem’s final five points.
“We had six bad serves and three net calls in that first game and you cannot do that if you expect to win against a good team like Salem,” Tokash said.
Katherine Stiff staked Salem to a 5-0 lead in the second game, but five service points by Janie Rafoth gave the Cardinals a lead they would not relinquish.
Leading 22-17 in the third game, two points by freshman Emma Hartshorn keyed a 3-1 run for the second victory.
In the final game of the night, Canfield raced to a 20-10 lead.
“This game is all about momentum and who works the hardest. It’s just an amazing feeling to be heading back to regional play,” Rafoth said.
Sabrina Mangapora led the Cardinals with 35 digs, 16 kills and nine blocks while Nicole Luklan added eight blocks and seven kills.
Also for Canfield (22-3), Rafoth had 18 points, Hartshorn 13 points and Darby Hepola 14 blocks as they extended their winning streak to 19 games.
The Quakers ended their season 15-10 under first-year head coach Allie Rich-Winner.
“We’ve been an up and down team all season long, but tonight we came out strong and won the first game. After that, we were inconsistent with our hitters with one on and one off,” Rich-Winner said.
“We were a young team that just got better each and every game. We peaked at just the right time,” she added.
Lindsey Foster had 15 kills and four blocks while Stiff had 14 assists, seven digs and three kills to pace the Quakers. Megan Lehwald and Sami Reedy each had seven digs.