Springfield outlasts S. Range in five sets
By Greg Gulas
NEW MIDDLETOWN
Prior to the start of the season, Springfield volleyball coach Bill Knight took his team to Cincinnati to compete at the Friendship Cup Camp.
The idea was to play plenty of volleyball and in the process, bond as a team.
He had an idea that the camp experience could be a difference-maker during the season and realizes now how important it was back in July that his players got to know one another.
“We played 24 games in three days at the Friendship Cup Camp and with 20 teams there, our players got to see quite a bit of action,” Knight said.
The Tigers needed five games, winning the decisive fifth game, 15-12, as they defeated South Range on Tuesday.
“The team concept has really worked well for us this season,” Knight said. “This team doesn’t want to lose on their home court and working as hard in the first game as they did in the fifth was the key to tonight’s win.”
The Tigers (11-3, 8-1 ITCL) took the opening game, 25-21, needing four points from Olivia Williamson to break open a 19-18 lead before settling for a four-point victory.
“We played together as a team, especially in the first, third and final game,” Williamson said. “It was a great defensive game as they kept us on our toes all night long.”
Stevie Taylor registered nine points to give the Raiders a 25-11 win in the second game. Springfield’s Gabby Fellows, who had 19 kills, notched the final point in the third game as the Tigers won, 25-20.
“South Range is a big rival and we felt like we needed to jump out to an early lead if we expected to win,” Fellows said. “They have some excellent hitters, but give our back row credit because they were amazing.”
With the final game knotted at 10, two points by Marissa Buchenic keyed a 5-2, game-ending run by the Tigers as they improved to 6-1 at home this season.
Morgan Buchenic added 10 blocks while Marissa Buchenic registered 29 assists for Springfield.
Lynnie Ritter, a freshman, had 15 kills and two blocks for South Range while Caitlyn Adams had 11 kills, eight blocks, five points and two aces for the Raiders (7-6, 4-5). Madison Juillerat had 45 assists.
“We’re a young team still looking to get in sync with each other but tonight we played with a lot of heart. They dove for every ball and fought for everything,” Raiders coach Rachell Storm-Baker said.