Perhaps it was to create an extra challenge that, a year ago, the Section III girls volleyball Class AA championship match was moved to Fayetteville-Manlius, so as to give the reigning champions of Baldwinsville an extra hurdle should F-M rise to challenge them.
In 2018, that didn’t prove a big obstacle – and it didn’t this time, either.
With another of its comprehensive efforts, the Bees knocked off the Hornets in three sets Friday night to once again capture the sectional title and maintain a perfect record with its 16th victory in a row.
Having gone on the road to defeat no. 2 seed Cicero-North Syracuse in the semifinals two nights earlier, F-M’s presence in the final meant a large, loud home crowd to counter the big traveling contingent of B’ville partisans.
And the Hornets did start well, seizing a 6-4 lead in the opening set. It would also have a 5-4 edge in the second set and a 6-5 advantage early in the third set. None of those leads lasted for long.
As it turned out, the first set was the toughest. Despite not trailing after it went up 8-7, B’ville found it difficult to put F-M away, the margin 17-15 late and then, even when it looked comfortable, the Hornets fought off three set points.
But once the Bees took that set 25-21, things got easier. A 6-0 run early in the second set erased that 5-4 deficit and B’ville kept adding to the margin, serving well and providing plenty of power at the net that F-M could not contain.
The 25-14 win in the second was followed by a third set where the Hornets again hung around for a while, only trailing 17-15 before four consecutive points ignited a closing 8-2 spurt and an ultimate 25-17 victory.
Rileigh Kimball dominated at the net, piling up 19 kills to go with six digs and four aces, while Jenna Garvey’s fine all-around effort included 22 assists, six kills and four digs. Freshman Kyrah Wilbur was a top front-line presence, too, thanks to her five kills and four blocks.
Summer McClintic had 15 assists, to go with three assists, five kills and two digs. Sophia Kordas notched eight kills and three digs as Brooke Clute got eight digs.
B’ville’s last opportunity to play in front of a home crowd at Baker High School Gym came in last Tuesday night’s sectional AA semifinal, when it put away no. 4 seed West Genesee in three sets.
The 25-10, 25-13, 25-14 rout of the Wildcats featured the Bees’ usual mix of power and precision, with Garvey at the forefront as she got 15 assists, plus seven digs and three aces.
Wilbur and Kordas had four kills apiece, while Kimball mixed in three kills, five digs and six assists. Megan Brecht added four digs and Maddy Shuler had two kills as Jenna Wallace had two aces.
On Thursday night, the Baldwinsville boys volleyball team looked to avenge two regular-season defeats to no. 2 seed Liverpool in Thursday’s semifinal, played at C-NS, and almost did so in an epic five-set battle.
The first set hinted at the long night ahead, but the 25-23 defeat did not faze the Bees because, in the second set, it withstood several set points while missing on many of its own chances before finally pulling it out 32-30.
They continued to go back and forth, Liverpool pulling out the third set 25-21, but B’ville taking the third set 25-22, so the season hung on a fifth-set race to 15 points.
Only by the slightest 15-13 margin did the Warriors prevail and end the Bees’ season, this despite some fine individual performances.
Aidan Priest finished with 21 kills, while Ben Stisser had 15 kills and five aces, plus a pair of blocks. Adam Lobdell added six kills as Carter Healey dished out 43 assists, plus four digs, two aces and two blocks.
Quinn Moore led Liverpool with 29 assists, 16 digs, two kills, two aces and two blocks. Anthony Pezzino finished with 12 kills and 12 digs, while Jagger Alberici picked up 27 digs.
Now B’ville will face Section II champion Niskayuna in next Saturday’s Class AA regional final at 11 a.m. at Jamesville-DeWitt. Kimball said her team is quite hungry to make a return to the state final four (set for Nov. 23-24 in Glens Falls) after regional defeats to Shenendehowa each of the last three years.
