Photo by Brian Dulik
Copley libero Micki Gallien will be part of the Summit/Medina County team at the annual OHSVCA District Senior All-Star Matches on Friday night. The doubleheader takes place at Ellet and begins at 6 p.m.
BARBERTON, Ohio -- Copley's volleyball team has made quite a statement in winning its first two matches at the Barberton Division I Sectional.
The Indians edged Akron City Series champion Firestone 25-18, 21-25, 25-16, 24-26, 15-7 on Tuesday night, less than 24 hours after eliminating Cloverleaf in a five-game classic.
As a result of their back-to-back victories, Copley (9-15) earned a spot in next week's district semifinals, where it will play second-seeded Medina. The Falcons finished their fine season at 16-7.
"After playing two hard five-game matches in two nights, I told the girls, 'Go home and rest -- and I'll see you Thursday,'" Indians coach Lisa Sharnsky said, smiling.
"The end of our season has been a real whirlwind, going from our Senior Night right into the tournament. Everyone on our team needs a little break from volleyball, but we'll be ready to go when we get back to practice."
Senior outside hitter Nikki Meyer, junior outside hitter Taylor Beard, and sophomore middle hitter Kaela Drake shared team-high honors with nine kills for Copley.
Also shining for the Indians were senior libero Micki Gallien with 25 digs, sophomore Lexi Cohen with 19 service points, and junior Summer Emich with 34 assists.
Not surprisingly, those aforementioned players also played major roles in Copley's 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 25-27, 20-18 thriller over the Colts in the first round of the OHSAA Tournament.
"Going into sectionals, we knew we had all the tools, we just needed to use them," said Sharnsky, whose team tied for sixth place in the Suburban League. "It's been a lot of fun watching everything come together for us here."
Firestone fought valiantly in its first five-gamer of the season, fighting off a match point in the fourth after losing setter Jasmine Jones to a potentially major knee injury.
City Series Player of the Year Paige Gravenstein led the effort after shifting from her usual hitter spot to fill in for Jones. Not surprisingly, the junior was more than up to the challenge, amassing 31 assists, 22 service points, nine digs, eight kills and eight aces.
Middle blocker Sara Davis also was a force for the Falcons with 16 kills and 10 blocks, while fellow sophomore Jordan Jernigan had 17 digs and countless key serve receptions.
"We had a really great season and everybody left it all out there tonight, so there are no regrets," said Jernigan, one of four starters who will be back for coach Stacey Myers in 2012. "Losing definitely hurts because it was our last match, but we did our best as a team.
"We really did play hard every point for each other and for our coaches."
In other sectional volleyball matches:
MEDINA DEF. BARBERTON, 3-0. (By Jeff Brewer)
BARBERTON, Ohio -- Few volleyball teams are more excited than Medina to be competing at a new district site.
By virtue of a 25-13, 25-18, 25-15 sweep of host Barberton, Medina already has equaled its best showing of the previous 10 years at the Grafton Midview Division I District.
“It’s fun to be in a new building,” Medina senior standout Ally Peters said. “The other building was bad luck.”
Beginning in 2001 at Midview, the Bees won 11 matches and lost 10. They reached the district semifinal round three times, but never cracked the championship match. A heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Olmsted Falls in a sectional final last year was the final punch in the gut.
“It’s refreshing -- something new, something different,” Medina coach Jason Schellenberger said. “Obviously, the facilities here are beautiful. Here we have a lot higher ceiling to play with which is nice.”
Behind 25 kills and 12 digs from Peters, the Bees (15-8) had little trouble eliminating the Magics (8-14) and extending their season.
“Ally did a great job today. She carried the team,” Schellenberger said.
Medina jumped out 10-3 in the first game and cruised to a comfortable win in Game 1. Barberton took a 5-0 lead in the second game and the Bees rallied for a 6-6 tie before pulling away. Peters had three kills early in Game 3 and the Bees led 6-1 on their way to a 25-15 win.
“Our biggest challenge is when we play down to the other team’s level and that was our biggest worry about coming out today because we know that always happens to us,” said Peters, a University of Alabma-Birmingham recruit.
Senior Kaitlyn Witsaman notched 12 kills and three aces, and senior setter Mallory Gustincic 29 assists for Medina.
“We have a lot to work on still,” Schellenberger said. ‘We had 12 service errors.”
Junior Nikolette Scruggs and senior Megan Jerome each had five kills for the Magics (8-14), who beat Ellet 21-25, 25-9, 25-18, 25-17 in their opener Monday.
“Last night was a big accomplishment for us,” Barberton coach Olivia Williams said. “I think since this school has been up for 11 years, we’ve never made it past the first round."
ARCHBISHOP HOBAN DEF. AKRON NORTH, 3-0. Molly Leslein led the way with 13 service points, including five aces, and four digs to propel the Knights to a 25-9, 25-6, 25-12 victory over the Vikings.
Sami Stewart added 15 assists for Hoban, which plays Saturday at 5:30 p.m. in a Tallmadge Division II Sectional final.
Sandra Dickos spiked seven kills, while Jazmin Johnson had a block for the Knights.
MASSILLON JACKSON DEF. GREEN, 3-0. At Uniontown, Jackson (23-0) remained undefeated with a resounding Lake Division I Sectional win over Green 25-15, 25-11, 25-9.
Kristin Cardwell had 36 assists and 16 service points, including six aces, as the Polar Bears dominated the Bullodgs. Lauren Rossiter (3 blocks) and Jasmine Reale (3 digs) were defensive leaders for Green.