XENIA — A bit of a slow start didn’t deter Indian Lake on Saturday as they won a four-set victory over Archbishop Alter in a Division IV sectional final.
Alter won the first set 26-24, with the Lakers taking the others 25-23, 25-17 and 25-12.
Addy Roby recorded her 1,000th career assist early in the match. She had 46 total, along with 12 digs and three kills.
Cami Bailey had 19 kills and nine digs, with Kit Miller getting 13 kills and 12 digs, plus three blocks.
Courtney Altstaetter had nine kills and five blocks.
Annie Rapp had nine kills, eight digs, and was 16-of-16 serving. Alivia Kinney had five kills and seven digs.
Riley Ross had seven digs and two aces, while Makenna Hurley had nine digs and was 8-of-8 serving.
Coach Missy Mefford said, “It always seems like the first few points of a game, or sometimes even the whole first set, it just takes us a little bit to get going. But once we’re going we can get things done.”
She added. “(Alter) had some nice hitters. They were able to tip some things short that we weren’t picking up. But we finally picked up on those things and were able to play our game.”
In the first set, things went back and forth, with Alter eventually taking an 11-8 lead. Indian Lake then won five of the next six points.
After three for Alter, Indian Lake won four of five, then gave up two.
A four-point run put the Lakers ahead 21-18. But Alter went on a roll, winning six out of seven to get up 24-22. The Lakers drew even, but Alter then closed it out with two straight.
In the second set, the early going was a repeat of the first, with neither side leading by more than a point or two.
Indian Lake won a few in a row to take a 14-11 lead, but Alter kept in range. The Lakers got ahead 20-16, and managed to stay in front over the next stretch. Alter used a few small runs to lead 23-22, but the Lakers got three in a row, the last on a kill by Bailey to even the match at one set each.
The third set was where the Lakers really got rolling. They gave up one point, then ripped off nine straight with Rapp serving. Alter got a couple points before the Lakers won five of six to go ahead 14-4.
The Lady Knights then had a 6-0 run. The rest of the set was more balanced, but Indian Lake stayed in front and won by eight points.
In the fourth, Indian Lake controlled matters early getting up by double digits at 15-5. They would reach 20 before Alter made a late charge. But four straight points, three with Roby serving, closed out the set and the match.
Indian Lake, now 19-4 on the year, will face Oakwood in a district semifinal Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
The winner plays for the district title on Saturday.
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Ben Logan 3, Eaton 2
Benjamin Logan also won a sectional title on Saturday, topping Eaton in five sets.
The Lady Raiders won the first set 25-22, then Eaton took the second 25-15.
Ben Logan won the third 25-21, with the Lady Eagles winning the fourth 25-21.
The tiebreaker went to the Lady Raiders, 15-11.
Summer Cline had 19 kills, Georgia Daniels 16, and Abby Vance 10. Kylie Harner had 47 assists, and Annika Chappell had six blocks.
Ben Logan is now 9-14. They will face Bethel today at 7 p.m. in a district semifinal at Xenia.
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Bellefontaine 3, Butler 0
XENIA — Bellefontaine took another step on the postseason path Monday, with a straight sets win over Vandalia Butler in the Division III volleyball tournament.
The Lady Chieftains won by scores of 25-19, 25-23 and 25-16.
Bellefontaine is now 18-6 on the year. They will return to action on Saturday to face either Turpin or Western Brown for the district title. The match will be at the Fairfield Arena, with the time to be announced.
