WVB: Service aces carry Colonels over Cairn to victory
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – In their eighth game of the season, the Colonels swept Cairn 3-0 in the Marts Center.
“I think we still can grow, we have lots of room to get better and better, but they are playing well as a young team,” said head coach Joe Czopek.“We tried another new lineup in our third set and we are still trying to find the magic combination, but the third lineup allows for more interceptions.”
In their first set, the Colonels were down 3-6 when junior opposite Caroll got a kill to bring the score to 4-6. Caroll then got four straight aces to bring the Colonels back into the game, 8-6.
“I just wanted to keep the ball in, keep the plays going, gain some momentum, and keep the points going,” said Caroll.
Wilkes built upon the momentum from Caroll, but an attack error from Allie Murie allowed for Cairn to match the Colonels score, tying things up at eight points a piece.
“We still need to work on our transition game,” said Czopek. “We do not flow too well, we are not choreographed. We are still running into people, running into lanes that we do not belong in. we just need to work on our transitions from offense to defense to offense to defense because that is the area we are going to get better at.”
Despite some unprecedented errors, Wilkes won their second set 25-19 with Ousey coming in clutch with another game winning kill.
The third and final match of the evening was a similar story to the other two matches played earlier in the evening. This time, the Highlanders did not start the game with a fast lead. The Colonels went on a four point run, forcing Cairn to play the catch-up game.
The lead was bounced between the two teams throughout the entire contest, until sophomore libero Ali Yordy rotated to serve. Yordy led the Colonels to a break-away eight point run that proved vital.
“I was very proud of the control we had on our side of the net throughout the game,” said Yordy. “Even if we were down by a few, we would come back. Our communication definitely improved.”
Behind Yordy’s five aces, the front- row, power-hitter sisters, sophomore middle Nicole Fitzpatrick and Ousey, carried the Colonels to another 25-19 victory on the evening.
The Colonels play their second MAC Freedom game against FDU Florham tonight, Sept. 22, at 7 p.m.
