It was only fitting that the Westhill girls volleyball team’s final obstacle in the way of another undefeated regular season was its next-door neighbors – and the coach who led them to a state championship a year earlier.
The Warriors met West Genesee last Wednesday night, completing a cycle of sorts. After winning that 2018 state title, Carolyn Corley left Westhill to take over the Wildcats’ varsity program.
Under new head coach Carla Prince, the Warriors, no. 2 in the New York Volleyball Coaches Association’s state Class B rankings, have remained dominant and proved that again here, sweeping WG in three sets.
The 25-19, 25-21, 25-19 decision featured Sarah Schwartz earning 39 assists and nine digs, feeding a front line where Sara Galante got 12 kills and six digs. Kate Heinrich augmented her 12 kills with five blocks.
Morgan Richardson continue to improve, earning eight kills as Grace O’Connell and Hannah Schmitz had four kills apiece. Defensively, Gianna Militi earned nine digs to match Schwartz as J Welch added eight digs.
WG’s effort featured 12 kills from Isabella Allen and 27 assists from Anna Snyder. Phoebe Anderson gained five kills, with Brynn Zajac earning four kills and Mackenzie Winn picking up 14 digs.
Right before the WG match, Westhill hosted LaFayette last Monday, honoring its senior class and then outclassing a good Lancers squad that entered the night with a 12-4 record.
The 25-10, 25-15, 25-14 sweep included Schwartz earning 20 assists and Militi getting 13 digs. Galante had 12 kills and nine digs, with O’Connell getting five kills and Richardson adding three aces.
WG rumbled past Corcoran 25-13, 25-17, 25-11 a night before its match with Westhill. nyder had 18 assists and Margaret Clancy got 10 assists as Allen earned 10 kills, just ahead of Mia Lamanna’s nine kills and Zajac’s six kills.
And after the defeat to Westhill, the Wildcats handled Henninger Thursday and topped the Black Knights 25-13, 25-15, 25-21. Snyder had 19 assists, with Zajac earning seven kills and five aces. Lamanna and Julia Quirk both got five kills.
Another big local match took place last Tuesday, Skaneateles visiting Marcellus in the wake of the Mustangs going to Phoenix Oct. 19 and claiming top honors in the Onondaga High School League tournament.
And it proved a classic, the Mustangs taking the opener 25-18 before the Lakers earned 25-23 and 25-17 wins in the next two sets. Yet it was Marcellus with a comeback of its own, claiming the fourth set 25-21 and then winning the final set 25-17 to claim the match.
Bronte Stahl put together 20 assists, 12 kills, five blocks, eight digs and three aces in a superb all-around effort for the Mustangs as Anna Fern added 10 kills and six blocks. Jenna Mattison, with 15 assists and seven digs, helped Stahl on the back line.
Evelyn Webster earned 25 digs. Emily Falge got nine digs and Elaine Grattan seven digs as they both earned four kills. McKenzie Gutchess had four blocks as she and Brook Finarty both had three kills.
On the Lakers’ side, it was Maeve Canty earning 16 kills, four aces and 22 digs. Emma Keady had 16 assists and 18 digs, while Emma Miller (19 digs), Kristen Henry (16 digs, five kills), Ellie Peterson (14 digs), Alex Csemez (13 digs) and Rory Comer (eight digs) all helped on defense.
Solvay locked up a sectional playoff berth in last Tuesday’s match with Central Square, improving to 7-8 as the Bearcats put together a 25-22, 25-18, 25-23 sweep of the Redhawks.
Sophia Guadagnolo finished with 28 assists, plus five aces. On a well-balanced front line, Myah Platler led with eight kills, with Genea Kadlubowski adding seven kills as Alicia Grainger and Isabella Lambert had six kills apiece. Jordan Bamba had 10 digs.
Then, in four sets, Solvay topped LaFayette 25-19, 23-25, 26-24, 24-19 in another tight match. Platler had 15 kills, five aces and 12 digs, with Grainger getting nine kills and Anastasia LaFlair six kills as Guadagnolo amassed 32 assists and seven aces. Bamba had 15 digs.
Bishop Ludden hosted Fulton on Thursday night, falling in four sets 25-22, 25-10, 17-25, 25-13 to the Red Raiders. Kate Ruddy had 15 assists and eight digs, with Jasmine Cuffee and Ally Royal also getting eight digs as Cuffee had five kills, Alexis Pietrowski six kills and Megan Virkler four kills.
