Neither of the area’s top high school girls volleyball teams would get tripped up during the last week of September.
Westhill met Homer last Thursday night and stayed undefeated, rolling through the first two sets 25-14 and 25-18 before edging the Trojans 28-26 to prevent it from going any further.
Mackenzie Martin gathered up 14 assists, nine kills, three aces, two blocks and two digs. Sara Galante had 15 kills and six digs, with Sarah Schwartz serving up seven aces and amassing 17 assists. Montanna Gedney had eight kills, four aces and 15 digs
Marcellus, in its only match last week, was at Phoenix Wednesday and had no trouble sweeping the Firebirds, taking the first two sets by equal 25-13 margins and the third set 25-15.
Bronte Stahl gained 15 assists, adding six digs, two kills and two aces. Sydney French had seven kills, seven digs and four aces, while Michaela Godbold, Evelyn Webster and Jess Majo had three aces apiece, Godbold adding four kills and Webster eight digs.
Solvay takes on Marcellus on Tuesday. Before that, though, the Bearcats, trying to keep up with Westhill’s undefeated run, took a seven-match win streak into last Wednesday’s match with Cazenovia, the same team it swept at Buckley Gym two weeks earlier.
At home this time, Solvay pulled out the first set 25-23 and, after Cazenovia claimed the second 25-18, won another close 25-22 decision in the third.
Once more, though, Cazenovia fought back, not just winning the fourth set 25-19, but also taking the match when it defeated the Bearcats 25-20 in the fifth.This happened despite Allie Posnick’s 30 digs, 28 assists, eight kills and six aces.
Myah Platler had 17 kills and seven digs, with Jordan Bamba getting 21 digs as Izzy Lambert gained six kills and Nicole Backus earned five kills. Lindsey Lawson (24 kills, four blocks, 12 digs) and Josie Avery (25 assists, 14 digs) paced Cazenovia.
Bishop Ludden went head-to-head with Jordan-Elbridge on Thursday. The Gaelic Knights won the first set 25-18 and, after the Eagles took the second set 25-20, Ludden rolled through the next two sets 25-13 and 25-15 to close it out.
Aurora Deshaies earned 18 kills and Jasmine Cuffee got 12 kills, with Megan Virkler adding five kills and six blocks. Sarah Morrell amassed 34 assists as Emma Catalano produced 13 digs.
On J-E’s side, Mackenzie Kreisler gained 10 assists, plus three digs. Cassie Klock earned five aces as Ashlee Eaton got five kills. Paige Lane had four kills as Emily Bard produced 13 digs and Eaton nine digs.
Earlier in the week, Ludden had played twice, going to Fulton and putting away the Red Raiders in three close sets, winning the first two by 25-23 margins and the third 25-22.
Deshaies, just after she announced she would play basketball at the University of New Haven next winter, had eight kills, matching Cuffee as Jayden Burney got seven kills. Morrell earned 18 assists as Madison Prowak gained three aces.
Ludden handled Hamilton 25-14, 25-19, 25-10 on Tuesday night, Deshaies getting 12 kills and eight aces as Morrell finished with eight assists. Burney had three kills and three blocks, Catalano contributing nine digs.
J-E had faced Mexico last Tuesday and it went to five sets. Even with convincing 25-13 and 25-14 defeats in the first and third sets, the Eagles twice rallied, taking the second 25-23 and rolling to a 25-13 win of its own in the fourth.
However, the Tigers prevailed 25-17 in the final set, as Kreisler gained 12 assists and Bard had 18 digs. Lane had six aces and Klock three aces as they each contributed four kills, Laine adding eight digs.
West Genesee took on Cicero-North Syracuse last Tuesday night, and was close in the second and third sets, yet still lost 25-16, 26-24, 25-22 to the Northstars.
Brynn Zajac earned 11 digs, three aces and nine kills, with Arlea Vecchio getting 13 digs. Anna Snyder produced 16 assists, four kills and six digs as Isabella Allen got five kills and Julia Quirk four kills. Sarah Rigge had eight digs and Caroline Sgroi produced seven digs.
From there, WG had to go to Liverpool Thursday night, where it lost the first set 25-18 and won the second set 25-22. Each of the next two sets went beyond the point limit, but the Wildcats dropped both of them to the Warriors by 26-24 and 27-25 margins.
Quirk, with nine kills and eight digs, led a balanced front line where Sgroi and Rigge each had seven kills, Sgroi adding 10 assists. ‘
Zajac, aside from her six assists, earned six aces, four kills and 14 digs, just ahead of Allen’s total of 12 kills. Lamanna had four kills as Snyder put together 26 assists and five kills,
