Amid the constant change and growth in girls volleyball, the Bishop Ludden Gaelic Knights had only known misery.
A series of winless campaigns had led, in 2008, to the program being dropped at the varsity level. When it returned in the fall of 2010 under coach Nate Balcom, it underwent another winless campaign.
All this made Friday’s five-game victory over Syracuse’s Institute of Technology Central that much sweeter. It marked the end of the Gaelic Knights’ 126-match skid that went all the way back to the last century – 1998, to be precise.
Naturally, it wasn’t easy. Ludden dominated the first game 25-12, but saw ITC claim the second game 25-20. The Gaelic Knights again went in front with a 25-19 third game, but just two points from victory saw it slip away as the Eagles won the fourth game 25-23.
However, in the final game Ludden got all the crucial points near the end, and by a 25-20 margin, a win was, at last, attained.
Jill Kompf led the way, serving up seven aces and dealing out 22 assists. Hailey BeVard had 10 kills and nine aces, with Breanna Bacon adding 10 kills of her own, plus three aces. Abbie Johnson picked up nine kills. Caleigh Bishop (six aces) and Cassandra Janusz (five aces) contributed, too.
Ludden is part of an Onondaga High School League growing, as several programs shift from the winter to the fall in order to get a shot at a possible state championship down the road.
That includes Solvay and Westhill. The Bearcats, a one-time power that has not won a sectional title since 1999, opened on Thursday night with a three-game loss to Skaneateles.
A close first game saw the Lakers pull it out, 28-26, and Solvay never recovered, dropping the next two games 25-20 and 25-10.
Lauren Bandera managed 15 assists, the passes often going to Meghan O’Toole, who had seven kills. Julie Gardner added eight digs, five aces and four kills.
Leslie Santos picked up nine digs and Lydia Bakowski got five digs. Sidney Lawson (15 assists, seven digs) and Julianna Augustine (10 kills, three blocks) led the Skaneateles push.
