St. Vincent girls grab first place in NCL II volleyball

St. Vincent grabbed first place in the North Central League II volleyball race with a convincing 3-0 win over second-place Roseland University Prep in Santa Rosa on Tuesday night.

The Lady Mustangs took all the energy out of the Lady Knight home crowd by leading most of the way to grab the first set, 25-18. Paced by the play at center net by senior Olivia Gergus, the Mustangs gradually expanded a lead that they took at 16-15, and the visitors never looked back.

Gergus blocked a couple of Knight offensive efforts, and followed with a well-placed left-hand kill to discourage any counter attack effort by Roseland. Her steady rotation at the midpoint of the net prevented the Knights from many attempted returns.

At the center of most of the St. Vincent activity for the evening was senior setter Eva Clark, who prowled the court from front to back to put up some soft assists for Gergus, Alyssa Kropelnicki and sophomore Amanda Zeryny.

The final placement of the first set was stuck by captain Alana Kalehua, who put one along the left backcourt for a winner.

Clark’s work was not done for the night as she got better as the match continued. The Mustangs did not allow the hosts to climb back into the contest as they won the next two sets, 25-19 and 25-16. In one stretch, the senior setter served for five consecutive points in the second set.

Kills by Gergus and Kropelnicki demonstrated the difference in the style of both teams. Roseland was content to keep the ball in play with some acrobatic returns by their defense. Coach Chris Clark of the Mustangs, however, floored a squad that was considerably more aggressive with more hard-hit balls into the Knight back court.

Only seven players were suited for St. Vincent, and every player got significant playing time. The Knights countered by rotating in many reserves, and it might have crippled their continuity.

Veteran libero Isabella Souza was very consistent for the Mustangs, putting up several effective assists in the late going. Souza also made some saving recoveries from the back court to keep the ball in play.

The longest rally of the match came in the first set when both teams made several saving hits, including one by the host Knights that sailed over the secured basketball backboards. Roseland eventually won the rally, but eventually dropped the important match.

St. Vincent improved to 10-1 overall, but more importantly 6-0 in NC II play. Roseland University Prep slipped to 5-1 in conference play and 9-5 for the season.

The junior varsity match ended on a very exciting note when St. Vincent held off the JV Knights, 15-13, in the third and deciding set.