Most of the area’s six high school girls volleyball teams had some sort of match action during the first full week of school.
The highlight was the renewal of a long-time rivalry between Marcellus and Solvay last Thursday night. They split the first two sets, but a close third set went in the Mustangs’ favor and it went on to beat the Bearcats in four 25-19, 24-26, 25-21, 25-14.
Sydney French, with nine kills, and Meghan O’Brien, with eight kills, led the Marcellus front line as Grace Hoey added four kills and three assists. Olivia Quick earned 18 assists, three blocks, four digs and two aces. Rachel Randall added six digs.
On Solvay’s side, Bella Petralito was credited with 14 kills and 12 digs and Brielle Bagozzi got 10 kills, plus 10 digs. Allie Posnick finished with 28 assists, adding six aces, four kills and three digs. Gabby Rivera had eight digs and two aces.
Before this, Marcellus, who lost to West Genesee Aug. 30, took a more painful defeat two days later against rival Skaneateles. The Mustangs won the first two sets by margins of 25-15 and 27-25, only to have the Lakers take the third set 25-17 and pull out the fourth and fifth sets by equal 25-23 margins.
Quick managed 30 assists while, up front, Julia Piorkowski had 13 kills and 10 digs. French got 12 kills, four aces and four digs as O’Brien added nine kills. Rachel Randall earned 16 digs. Grace Hoey had four kills and four digs.
West Genesee improved to 3-0 on the season last Thursday night, going to Henninger and rolling to a 25-13, 25-6, 25-5 sweep of the Black Knights. The Wildcats had 20 aces, six each by Madelyn Tibbetts and Arlea Vecchio, as Carolyn King got six kills and Audrey Dennis four kills, plus three aces. Anna Snyder had 10 assists and Greta Jasinski gained six assists.
WG had made it two wins in as many matches on Sept. 1 when it hosted Central Square and swept the Redhawks 25-13, 25-12, 25-16, led by Snyder, who got 19 assists, four kills, two blocks and three digs, and Dennis, who got five aces, six kills and 11 digs. King notched eight kills and Vecchio had nine digs.
Westhill got past the disappointment of its season-opening loss to Oswego Aug. 31 by winning its division at the Penfield Tournament two days later. Back in local action, the Warriors faced LaFayette last Wednesday night and were dominant in a 25-8, 25-12, 25-19 sweep of the Lancers.
Mackenzie Martin put together 22 assists, six kills, five aces and seven digs, Fellow junior Montanna Gedney put away 12 kills, adding seven assists and four digs. Sara Galante had five kills and four aces. Brigid Heinrich and Jasmine Jackson had four kills apiece as Sophia Sgroi contributed eight digs.
Jordan-Elbridge dropped a five-set decision last Tuesday to Living Word Academy, having lost the first two sets 25-16 and 25-22 before rallying to pull even, taking the third set 25-16 and the fourth set in a 25-23 thriller. But the Lions had the final surge, rolling through the fifth set 25-10.
The Eagles’ Mackenzie Kreisler earned six aces and 13 assists, with Ranait McGuire adding eight kills, five aces and 10 digs. Renee Eggleston had nine digs as Cassie Klock and Mollie Derby had four kills apiece.
On Thursday night, J-E lost, 25-21, 25-17, 25-14, to Mexico, Kreisler gained eight assists as Derby, Eggleston and Cassie Schader each had four kills. Klock added five blocks.
