St. Vincent gets volleyball off to impressive start

St. Vincent got the volleyball season off to an impressive start with a 3-1 win over Middletown.|

St. Vincent closed out a tight season-opening volleyball match against visiting Middletown with a strong finish as the Lady Mustangs posted a 3-1 victory on Tuesday evening at DeCarli Gym.

After dropping a 25-23 decision in the third set, it looked as if the taller Mustangs from Middletown had turned momentum around behind their 6-foot, 3-inch middle blocker Abi Hibner. Hibner blocked four balls at the net, and she altered many other shots for Middletown as it appeared the momentum had turned around. St. Vincent won the opening two sets 28-25 and 26-24.

In the early stages of the competition, St. Vincent was the most consistent team on the floor. The Lady Mustangs kept the ball in play with the digging of young players sophomore Sarah Sarlette and freshman Sophia Skubic. Both hustled on the defensive end and set the ball for the heavy hitters Aly Kropelnicki and Amanda Zeryny.

With the match on the line, St. Vincent bolted to a 15-7 advantage behind the jump serves of Kropelnicki, and the momentum swung back to the home club. Kropelnicki hit a couple of winners deep into the Middletown defense, and she followed with a jumping service ace along the tight side of the court.

The closest that the visiting Mustangs got down the stretch was 15-18, but a couple of winners by veteran Margaret Coll helped to seal the verdict. Coll contributed a tip at the net and a hit to the open floor for another point.

Kropelnicki, the most experienced player on the floor for St. Vincent, rotated well on defense and alternated big hits for winners with delicate sets. Zeryny also had strong moments offensively throughout the match. The home-standing Mustangs passed the ball effectively at mid net, and avoided the imposing figure of Hibner, who played only in the front line, but still blocked eight balls at the net even though she was rotated out of the lineup for serving purposes. She had 86 blocks last season.

Overall, the match was well played by both teams for the first contest of the season, which began early this year. It was the first contest for first-year coach Kelsey McIntire of St. Vincent, who fielded a young club in her high school coaching debut. McIntire comes to the Mustang program with club coaching experience.

In the junior varsity contest, Middletown came on strong with four consecutive points to defeat St. Vincent, 15-7, in the final set and captured a 2-1 victory.

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