Lady Warriors down Grovers but fall to Lady Rockets for 4-1 record
By Lenny Sementi
Tuscola’s volleyball team ran away and hid in game one of a home match against Villa Grove on Tuesday the 3rd, upending the Grovers 25-15 then won an overtime thriller in game two 27-25 to sweep a tough Lady Blue Devil squad.
Maddie Green continued her early season dominance from her setter position accounting for two aces, four saves, eight service points and a match high nine assists.
She found the twin towers Karli and Kate Dean seven times as the duo pounded out 11 kills. Jessie Martin found the Deans as well from her setter spot and also added five service points and a block to the stat sheet as Tuscola moved to 4-0 on the year.
The ladies in Black and Gold ran out to a 12-2 advantage in the first set behind kills from both Deans and Amelia Bosch and never looked back. Kendyl Ring fueled the early run with a seven-point service run that included three straight aces. She also added two kills to the team totals later in the game.
The two Douglas County rivals traded points early, then the Warriors broke open a 7-7 tie with a seven-point service run by Martin that put Tuscola in front 14-7. Grace Voyles had an ace late and a served up three points before Karli Dean closed the door at the net with three kills late. Miller’s JV team remained unbeaten as well sweeping the Lady Devils 25-12,25-13.
The Warriors first blemish on the schedule came two nights later on Thursday when they came up short against a very good Unity squad falling in two games 15-25, 18-25. The Lady Rockets ran off a nine-point run in game one then held on despite unforced errors. Martin found Karli Dean twice for kills and Kate once late in the first contest, but it was not enough.
Another nine-point Unity run to open game two put the Warriors in a big hole they would never recover from falling for the first time this season moving to 4-1 on the year overall. Martin was tops with nine assists in the match. Hope Dietrich led the way on defense with a team high eight saves, while Karli Dean and Kendyl Ring each ended the night with four kills.