FITCH PUSHES BACK REBELS TO GIVE BARTLETT 100 WINS

AUSTINTOWN OH-

In a premier volleyball match on Monday night, The Austintown Fitch Falcons hosted The Crestview Rebels in a battle of volleyball juggernauts. Both teams came into the contest having surpassed the 15 win mark in the season already. Another similarity between the two programs, their last loss came to Girard. The Crestview Lady Rebels loss to The Lady Indians would snap a 56 match regular season winning streak by Crestview.

Young setters have made a massive impact on each side, with Alaina Auer for The Rebels and Rylie Simons for The Falcons, a couple freshmen that have stepped into a major role on a varsity squad. With plenty of height and athleticism surrounding the setters, a primetime match was set for the network!

Set 1 did not disappoint, as a back-and-forth battle ensued, with both teams jockeying for position and neither able to take a commanding lead. Drawing even several times throughout the match, it looked like the opening set may never end between two of the best under YSN coverage. However, “Jackpot” Jocelyn Jourdan was money on the attack, converting almost 50 percent of her swings into kills against The Rebels. Jumping on a late run, The Falcons were able to seal a Set 1 victory by six points.

The second set saw Austintown keep up the energy from the previous set. Scoring four straight out of the gate, Fitch was able to gain an early advantage on Crestview. Never giving in, The Lady Rebels fought hard and kept the set close; however, The Falcons never surrendered the lead once they went on their opening run, taking a 2-0 set lead with a seven point victory.

Needing to dig themselves out of a hole, The Rebels could not afford to drop another set if they had any hopes of winning the match. A momentum shift is exactly what Crestview forced in Set 3, taking a page out of The Falcons book, piling on some arly points to take a lead on Fitch. Despite Austintown tying the set at several points, even taking a lead in the later portion, The Lady Rebels gained a late advantage and rode it to a slim three-point victory.

With the match now 2-1 in favor of Fitch, Crestview looked to keep momentum on their side of the fence in Set 4. Rewinding back to the first set, The Falcons and Rebels went back to the heavyweight battle. With both teams exchanging emphatic kills on one another in between strong defensive stands. With Set 5 on the horizon, Fitch shut down the comeback trail for Crestview. Surviving a late push from The Rebels, Fitch capped off the match with a slim two-point Set 4 victory to seal the 3-1 win.

The loss is the first time The Rebels have suffered more than one loss in a season since 2020, as Crestview (18-2) will now travel to Salem (4-14) on Thursday, October 13th. The win by The Falcons would be number 100 in the career of Jody Bartlett at Austintown. Wasting little time after their win, Fitch (17-2) has a date with a fellow All American Conference (AAC) foe in The Howland Tigers (15-6) on Tuesday, October 11th.

Set Scores

S1: Fitch 25 – 19 Crestview

S2: Fitch 25 – 18 Crestview

S3: Crestview 25 – 22 Fitch

S4: Fitch 25 – 23 Crestview

Match: Fitch 3 – 1 Crestview

Stats (Fitch)

Jocelyn Jourdan: 28 Kills, 1 Ace, 2 Blocks, 13 Digs, 2 Assists, 26 Receptions.

Kylie Folkwein: 8 Kills, 1 Ace, 3 Blocks, 12 Digs, 2 Assists, 6 Receptions.

Jordan Smith: 8 Kills, 1 Ace, 3 Blocks, 12 Digs, 1 Assist, 12 Receptions.

Rylie Simons: 6 Kills, 1 Ace, 1 Block, 16 Digs, 36 Assists, 1 Reception.

Afton Roby: 4 Kills, 1 Ace, 3 Blocks, 3 Digs, 2 Receptions.