Normally, no one would consider winning a Section III championship as the easy part of a season.
But that was exactly what the Cazenovia girls volleyball team must have figured as it only needed to win one match, against Hannibal, Saturday at Jamesville-DeWitt in order to secure the fall sectional title and earn a trip to the state tournament.
In short order, Cazenovia took care of the Warriors, prevailing in straight sets. Each of the first two sets ended 25-8 in the Lakers’ favor, and the third set wasn’t much different as, by a 25-9 margin, Cazenovia closed it out and claimed the championship.
With the match so one-sided, head coach Brian Ellithorpe got to use his entire roster. As a result, 11 different players were credited with kills, but none had more than the four put up by Molly Carges and Rebekah Swart.
Willa Mikayli-Koch had six aces to go with her three kills, while Madison Gabor added three kills. Dana Kiselica, Maddy Ellithorpe and Morgan Mapstone each earned four aces, with Amara Kattrein contributing three aces. Kattrein, Ellithorpe, Danielle Tedesco and Paige Nardella got two kills apiece, with Paige Schultz adding two blocks.
Now the tough part began for the Lakers, as it ventured to Sweet Home High School in suburban Buffalo to face the Section VI champions Wednesday night in Class C regional play. Cazenovia would need a win there, and then a victory in Saturday’s state quarterfinal at Gates-Chili, near Rochester, in order to reach the Nov. 16-17 state championships at Glens Falls Civic Center.
