CENTRAL NEW YORK – One volleyball side at Chittenango pursued a Section III championship. The other continued to chase perfection. Only one of them was able to maintain those goals.
In girls volleyball, the no. 2 seed Bears met no. 3 seed in last Tuesday’s Section III Class B semifinal, and despite a fine effort took a three-set defeat to the Red Raiders.
As it turned out, the opening set was crucial. Each side had a chance to win it late, but Lowville did so, 26-24, and followed it up by taking the next two sets 25-20 and 25-19 to advance to the sectional final, where it upended Vernon-Verona-Sherrill for the title.
This was proceeded by the Chittenango boys volleyball team going after its 11th consecutive victory, and getting it with another three-set sweep, this one over the boys side from Canastota.
After 25-15 and 25-16 win in the first two sets, the Raiders nearly prolonged the match, but Chittenango, by a 25-23 margin, was able to to put it away.
Jake Simmons earned 20 assists and nine digs, adding three kills. Trevor Cole, with eight kills, led a deep, balanced front line where Tyler Watson had six kills and Nate Dziedzick three kills to go with nine digs. Lawson Pagorek had three aces and seven digs.
Chittenango got to 12-0 two nights later by sweeping Westmoreland 25-9, 25-10, 26-24. This time Simmons had 23 assists and five kills, with Boulter getting six kills as Cole also had five kills. Dziedzic, Watson and Micah Alperuto had four kills apiece, Pagorek notching nine digs and Dziedzic eight digs.
Against Mount Markham on Friday, easy 25-7 and 25-12 wins in the first two sets were followed by a 25-21 loss in the third before the Berars closed it out 25-19 in the fourth.
Pagorek set a tone with seven aces to go with his seven digs. Simmons got six aces, 16 assists and six digs as Watson, with six kills, paced a front line where Alperuto got five kills and Dziedzic and Cole four kills apiece.
In its third match in as many days on Saturday, Chittenango had enough energy left to rout Little Falls 25-12, 25-13, 25-9 as Dziedzic and Watson both had 11 kills, Cole and Pagorek had five aces apiece and Simmons earned 25 assists, to go with six digs and five kills. Elia Bonelli added three aces.
