RESERVE GETS RIGHT BACK TO WINNING

ATWATER OH-

Coming off an opening conference loss 3 sets to 1 against The Mineral Ridge Rams on Tuesday, The Blue Devils looked to right the shit and get their first conference win of the season. Their opponent? The Waterloo Vikings, a young and hungry team that is on the rise! Having their struggles in years prior, The Vikings opened the season with a straight set match win against The Sebring Trojans, a match win that ended a 29 match losing streak for The Vikings.

The opening set looked similar to recent matchups between these two squads, as some early back and forth was quickly stomped out when Madison Leone stepped behind the service line for The Blue Devils. Starting off with a good serve, forcing Waterloo into some hitting errors, paired with Alivia Hughes and Lisa Eichert on offense, Reserve emphatically took the first set 25-6.

The following set was quite the opposite. As The Vikings came roaring back, finding their offense and holding a lead for the majority of the second set. Girls such as Isabella Kozma and Taryn Brown were huge in battling The Blue Devils to a 24-24 tie at one point in set two. However, the experience of Reserve being in this spot before shined through, as they ended up sneaking away with the 26-24 set victory.

Utilizing the momentum gained from the second set, Western Reserve kept the same energy rolling into the third set. Grabbing an early 14-4 advantage, The Vikings had a late comeback push, but it was ultimately thwarted. Allowing The Blue Devils to take both the set victory 25-13 and the match victory in straight sets. Alyvia Hughes was the story of the match, racking up 18 kills and pushing her season total to 51.

Western Reserve goes to 2-1 (1-1) on the season, as they have a date with The Canfield Cardinals in Berlin Center on Saturday, August 27th.

As for The Waterloo Vikings 1-1 (1-1), they will welcome in The Leetonia Bears on Saturday, August 27th as well. Stats of this match can be found below!

Set Scores

Set 1: Western Reserve 25 – Waterloo 6

Set 2: Western Reserve 26 – Waterloo 24

Set 3: Western Reserve 25 – Waterloo 13

Stats (Waterloo)

Isabella Kozma – 4 Kills, 1 Dig, 2 Blocks.

Taryn Brown – 4 Kills, 2 Digs, 2 Blocks.

Cameron Bentley – 2 Kills, 1 Dig.

Lexi Eddy – 2 Kills, 4 Digs.

Arianna Rebecchi – 1 Kill, 2 Digs, 1 Block.

Miranda Long – 3 Digs, 1 Assist.

Sophia Gonzales – 1 Dig.