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Lady Hawks fall in county final
The last time Williamsville won a county volleyball title, this year’s seniors were in first grade.
Winning the county for the first time in 2000, the top-seeded Lady Bullets held off No. 2 seed Riverton 25-22, 25-21 to improve to 16-4 on the season.
The match was very similar to the previous meeting, which ended 25-20, 25-19 and featured numerous missed serves by the Lady Hawks and a quick start by the Lady
Bullets.
Riverton (11-4) did not earn a point on its serve until the sixth server, when Lorna Hopper scored once, thanks to a Morgan Green block.
By then, Abby Clark had scored three times for WHS, including a combined block from Brooke Keenan and Kate Fowler.
A short time later, Emma Hanney rattled off five markers around a timeout from Riverton coach Ren Anweiler. She had an ace and Anna Butterfield had a kill, then after
the timeout, Fowler had another block and Brandi Donnelly put away a kill to make it 12-4.
Alex Bogusz stopped the bleeding temporarily with a kill, but after a Donnelly kill, Fowler scored three more as the lead swelled to 16-5.
Hopper scored her point, then Tyler Baskett (Green block) scored once and Bri Fisher scored seven in succession to get the Lady Hawks within 18-17.
Fisher’s first six markers alternated aces and Green block/kills, then Carlie Cuffle spiked away the seventh tally.
Donnelly’s kill nicked the tape and found a hole to stop the spurt, then Clark scored once for Williamsville.
Green, with Bogusz providing the kill, made it 20-19.
Hanney served an ace, which was answered by a Cuffle marker (Baskett kill) to leave it 23-22.
On a very long rally, Donnelly, on her third consecutive attack, finally found a hole in the Riverton defense, then Fowler, thanks to a Riverton miscue, closed out Game 1
with a point.
Donnelly (ace) and Baskett (WHS error) traded early points, then Fisher (Green block) scored twice to give the Lady Hawks their first lead of the match.
A Butterfield ace knotted the score at 6.
In a span of 10 servers, both teams only managed one point on their serve, from Cuffle (Bogusz kill) and Donnelly (Butterfield kill).
Riverton led 15-12 after two Green tallies (Cuffle kill and Bogusz and Stephanie Mizeur combined block), then Butterfield scored once after a long, though often sloppy,
rally that featured numerous free balls.
Hanney (ace) netted a pair and Fowler (one of the Lady Hawks’ numerous in-the-net violations) helped Williamsville regain the lead at 18-17.
Laura Kilbury (Frances Buescher block) put the Lady Bullets up 22-19.
Mizeur’s kill made it 22-20, then Butterfield responded with a kill of her own.
A Donnelly tip on Clark’s serve put the Lady Bullets at match point.
Green had a block to keep Riverton alive, but the Lady Hawks then had their sixth missed serve of the match (three in each game) as WHS celebrated.
Anweiler lamented the “mental” mistakes and lack of concentration on those missed serves, which have plagued Riverton this season.
That, and some lack of communication on various plays, also bothered Anweiler, who plays only one senior consistently in Hopper.
“They just do not give up on the ball, but we had some unforced errors,” she said. “I think both teams have improved a ton since the first meeting.”
She also credited her libero Hopper for “making it happen” in the back row with numerous digs.
Williamsville coach Stacey Carlson had a favorite word in the postmatch interview: “control.”
“The biggest thing we have worked on this year is self-control,” she said. “We are playing excited but we are controlling that excitement.”
Also, the Lady Bullets are closing out games with more regularity than in years past, something Carlson attributed to more maturity on her senior-laden squad.
“Our girls have learned their individual roles and are playing those roles well,” she said. “They are really learning that we can really win.”
Carlson downplayed the drought, noting that beating Riverton was probably a bigger deal to her players, and it was a bonus that it came in the county final.
“This is a very here-and-now team,” she said.
For the Lady Bullets, Kilbury had 11 digs and 10 assists, while Donnelly had 10 kills.
Butterfield came up big with eight kills and a dozen digs, and Keenan tallied eight points and nine assists.
Fowler and Clark both served five points.
For Riverton, Fisher, who had to leave the floor late in Game 2 after suffering a bloody nose after she got popped with the ball, racked up 19 digs, one more than Cuffle.
Fisher also had nine service points.
Green totaled nine kills and six blocks, and Cuffle contributed six kills.
Baskett finished with 14 assists and Erica Trueblood six.
***
Saturday at the county, in the quarterfinals the Lady Hawks cruised past Pawnee 25-9, 25-20.
Baskett had nine assists and Trueblood four, with Green (three blocks) leading with five kills. Cuffle (four kills) and Bogusz combined for seven more.
In a hard-fought semifinal match, the Lady Hawks beat Pleasant Plains in three games for the second time in four days, this time 24-26, 25-18, 25-22.
Riverton led late in Game 1 before seeing that advantage slip away.
The Lady Hawks led 9-2 in Game 2, then the Lady Cardinals roared back to lead 14-13.
Riverton scored the next six points and never looked back.
In Game 3, Riverton held a lead of a few points for most of the game, but a 5-0 Plains run made it 22-21 RHS.
Mizeur and Cuffle both had tip kills that made it 24-21, and the final point came via a Plains hitting error.
Green had 11 kills, five blocks and eight digs, and Bogusz chipped in three blocks.
Cuffle finished with eight kills and Hopper had four digs. Baskett totaled 11 assists, three more than Trueblood.
The last time Williamsville won a county volleyball title, this year’s seniors were in first grade.
Winning the county for the first time in 2000, the top-seeded Lady Bullets held off No. 2 seed Riverton 25-22, 25-21 to improve to 16-4 on the season.
The match was very similar to the previous meeting, which ended 25-20, 25-19 and featured numerous missed serves by the Lady Hawks and a quick start by the Lady
Bullets.
Riverton (11-4) did not earn a point on its serve until the sixth server, when Lorna Hopper scored once, thanks to a Morgan Green block.
By then, Abby Clark had scored three times for WHS, including a combined block from Brooke Keenan and Kate Fowler.
A short time later, Emma Hanney rattled off five markers around a timeout from Riverton coach Ren Anweiler. She had an ace and Anna Butterfield had a kill, then after
the timeout, Fowler had another block and Brandi Donnelly put away a kill to make it 12-4.
Alex Bogusz stopped the bleeding temporarily with a kill, but after a Donnelly kill, Fowler scored three more as the lead swelled to 16-5.
Hopper scored her point, then Tyler Baskett (Green block) scored once and Bri Fisher scored seven in succession to get the Lady Hawks within 18-17.
Fisher’s first six markers alternated aces and Green block/kills, then Carlie Cuffle spiked away the seventh tally.
Donnelly’s kill nicked the tape and found a hole to stop the spurt, then Clark scored once for Williamsville.
Green, with Bogusz providing the kill, made it 20-19.
Hanney served an ace, which was answered by a Cuffle marker (Baskett kill) to leave it 23-22.
On a very long rally, Donnelly, on her third consecutive attack, finally found a hole in the Riverton defense, then Fowler, thanks to a Riverton miscue, closed out Game 1
with a point.
Donnelly (ace) and Baskett (WHS error) traded early points, then Fisher (Green block) scored twice to give the Lady Hawks their first lead of the match.
A Butterfield ace knotted the score at 6.
In a span of 10 servers, both teams only managed one point on their serve, from Cuffle (Bogusz kill) and Donnelly (Butterfield kill).
Riverton led 15-12 after two Green tallies (Cuffle kill and Bogusz and Stephanie Mizeur combined block), then Butterfield scored once after a long, though often sloppy,
rally that featured numerous free balls.
Hanney (ace) netted a pair and Fowler (one of the Lady Hawks’ numerous in-the-net violations) helped Williamsville regain the lead at 18-17.
Laura Kilbury (Frances Buescher block) put the Lady Bullets up 22-19.
Mizeur’s kill made it 22-20, then Butterfield responded with a kill of her own.
A Donnelly tip on Clark’s serve put the Lady Bullets at match point.
Green had a block to keep Riverton alive, but the Lady Hawks then had their sixth missed serve of the match (three in each game) as WHS celebrated.
Anweiler lamented the “mental” mistakes and lack of concentration on those missed serves, which have plagued Riverton this season.
That, and some lack of communication on various plays, also bothered Anweiler, who plays only one senior consistently in Hopper.
“They just do not give up on the ball, but we had some unforced errors,” she said. “I think both teams have improved a ton since the first meeting.”
She also credited her libero Hopper for “making it happen” in the back row with numerous digs.
Williamsville coach Stacey Carlson had a favorite word in the postmatch interview: “control.”
“The biggest thing we have worked on this year is self-control,” she said. “We are playing excited but we are controlling that excitement.”
Also, the Lady Bullets are closing out games with more regularity than in years past, something Carlson attributed to more maturity on her senior-laden squad.
“Our girls have learned their individual roles and are playing those roles well,” she said. “They are really learning that we can really win.”
Carlson downplayed the drought, noting that beating Riverton was probably a bigger deal to her players, and it was a bonus that it came in the county final.
“This is a very here-and-now team,” she said.
For the Lady Bullets, Kilbury had 11 digs and 10 assists, while Donnelly had 10 kills.
Butterfield came up big with eight kills and a dozen digs, and Keenan tallied eight points and nine assists.
Fowler and Clark both served five points.
For Riverton, Fisher, who had to leave the floor late in Game 2 after suffering a bloody nose after she got popped with the ball, racked up 19 digs, one more than Cuffle.
Fisher also had nine service points.
Green totaled nine kills and six blocks, and Cuffle contributed six kills.
Baskett finished with 14 assists and Erica Trueblood six.
***
Saturday at the county, in the quarterfinals the Lady Hawks cruised past Pawnee 25-9, 25-20.
Baskett had nine assists and Trueblood four, with Green (three blocks) leading with five kills. Cuffle (four kills) and Bogusz combined for seven more.
In a hard-fought semifinal match, the Lady Hawks beat Pleasant Plains in three games for the second time in four days, this time 24-26, 25-18, 25-22.
Riverton led late in Game 1 before seeing that advantage slip away.
The Lady Hawks led 9-2 in Game 2, then the Lady Cardinals roared back to lead 14-13.
Riverton scored the next six points and never looked back.
In Game 3, Riverton held a lead of a few points for most of the game, but a 5-0 Plains run made it 22-21 RHS.
Mizeur and Cuffle both had tip kills that made it 24-21, and the final point came via a Plains hitting error.
Green had 11 kills, five blocks and eight digs, and Bogusz chipped in three blocks.
Cuffle finished with eight kills and Hopper had four digs. Baskett totaled 11 assists, three more than Trueblood.
Issue Date: Sept. 29, 2011
