Cazenovia’s girls volleyball head coach, Brian Ellithorpe, figured that if his team played up to its potential, it could sweep Thursday night’s clash with unbeaten Westhill at Buckley Gym – or it could get swept if the effort was something less.
The Lakers gave Ellithorpe the far more optimal ending.
In just three sets, Cazenovia turned back the Warriors in the first of two regular-season showdowns between the OHSL Liberty American division front-runners, delivering a fine all-around effort and exploiting Westhill’s many mistakes.
Ellithorpe said his team’s depth played a key role, too. All told, 13 players took the court for the Lakers, keeping everyone fresh and energetic and gradually wearing Westhill down.
Though both teams proved nervous at the outset, the Lakers overcame those jitters and quickly took control in the opening set, scoring four straight points to break a 2-2 tie and not trailing again.
Aided by poor serves that halted any possible Westhill momentum, the Lakers led by as many as nine points, 18-9, and cruised to a 25-18 win, but the second set would prove far more difficult.
The Warriors made its only sustained run of the match, going up 8-3 before Cazenovia used a time-out. Slowly, the Lakers caught up by the midway point, and then traded points until, trailing 21-20, the hosts notched four straight points on Jenna Britton’s serve and closed out the set 25-22.
During the third set, Cazenovia surrendered a 10-5 lead as Westhill tied it, 12-12. But two more bad Warriors serves swung momentum back to the Lakers, and it pulled away from there, claiming the set 25-19 and clinching the match, too.
Britton finished with 22 assists, often feeding it to Molly Carges, who had 12 kills and two blocks, and Danielle Tedesco, who had 10 kills, three blocks and three aces. Paige Nardella, in addition to her 12 digs, earned five kills.
Cazenovia, who improved to 7-0 on the season, and Westhill will meet again on Oct. 6.
Two nights earlier, the Lakers had hosted Solvay and recorded an impressive sweep of the Bearcats, winning the first set 25-16 and rolling through the second set 25-13 before holding off Solvay 25-22 in the third set to finish it off.
Britton, with her 24 assists, passed it to a well-balanced front line. Tedesco had seven kills, with y Carges and Morgan Hodinger each picking up six kills. Nardella led the defensive effort with six digs as she and Stacy Richer had two kills apiece.
During next week’s action, Cazenovia would host Marcellus before a Thursday-night trip to Skaneateles.
