Back-to-back defeats to Onondaga and Tully had slowed down the Christian Brothers Academy girls volleyball team that had started its season 6-1.
But the Brothers returned to the win column last Monday night against visiting Fabius-Pompey, taking the first two sets 25-18 and 25-19 and, after dropping the third set 25-10, edging the Falcons 25-23 to close it out.
Makenna Shultz had 11 assists and Delaney Della Donna got 10 kills, Della Donna adding 15 digs. Kristen DeLorenzo earned 27 digs and five kills.
Gia Anthony and Lauren Griffith had 13 digs apiece. Bella Roberson and Ashley Brown each got five kills, Roberson adding four blocks and Brown getting three blocks.
CBA then faced 7-1 Chittenango a night later, dropping a close opening set 25-23. It also lost the second set 25-16 and, while winning the third set 25-20, was overwhelmed by the Bears 25-12 in the fourth.
Sarah Martin, with nine kills and 13 digs, led a well-balanced Chittenango front line as Bayla Cutrie had eight kills, plus 16 digs and nine assists.
Savannah Penoyer and Jada Masiclat each finished with eight kills, Penoyer getting 18 digs and Masiclat finishing with 13 digs.
These same two teams met again on Thursday night, and this time CBA could not get a set from Chittenango, falling 25-9, 25-23, 25-23 to the Bears.
However, it was a milestone evening for the Brothers as DeLorenzo, already the school’s all-time leader in aces, earned her 1,000th career dig, finishing the night with 21 overall plus four aces and four kills.
Roberson contributed five kills and four blocks, while Della Donna had four kills and six digs. Shultz produced 13 assists as Martin gave Chittenango nine kills and 15 digs.
Back on Monday night, East Syracuse Minoa took on Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, and could not snatch a game from the Red Devils in a 25-15, 25-17, 25-15 defeat.
Olivia Fortuno had nine kills for the Spartans as Skyler Mahoney got four kills. Ariana Costanzo got five assists, with Helena Scolaro (eight digs), Morgan Ransom (six digs) and Jazmin Tyo (five digs) strong on defense.
VVS had LeeAnne Lowery earn eight kills and seven blocks, while Karli Doig had 20 assists and Sadie Riggs gained 16 digs.
A tense battle with Central Valley Academy followed on Thursday. ESM twice went in front, winning the first set 25-21 and the third 25-23, and twice the Thunder got even, claiming the second set 25-19 and the fourth 25-14.
It went to a fifth set, and like two previous times the Spartans claimed a close decision, winning the match 25-23 to improve its overall record to 5-8.
