Brian Hagberg
SHEFFIELD, Pa. – In an early-season battle of wills, Sheffield came away with a 3-2 (20-25, 25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 15-8) win over Kane.
Rewatch the match:
Kassidy Orinko had 22 kills, 24 digs, and seven blocks to earn Allegheny Grille of Foxburg Player of the Game honors.
“We knew it was going to be a tough competition, but we knew if we put our best foot out there we would be competitive with them,” Orinko said during her Cole Orthodontic Associates postgame interview. “Our energy was so high (in the fifth set), our communication (was working), we were swinging hard, and we never gave up on that ball.”
See Orinko’s full Cole Orthodontic Associates postgame interview:
Both teams played evenly through the first three sets, with neither able to go on any extended runs. The Wolves took a 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-20 win.
Sheffield came back to take the next two sets, 25-23 and 25-22, to grab a 2-1 match lead.
Kane wasn’t about to go away quietly, though, as the Wolves built a 20-9 lead in the fourth set, before closing out the set with a 25-20.
The Wolverines returned the favor in the fifth set, racing out to a 7-2 lead and closing out the match with a 15-8 win.
Madison Connolly had 21 digs and six blocks for the Wolverines, while Kadence Steffan had 29 digs and ran the offense with 30 set assists.
EISENHOWER 3, ERIE FIRST CHRISTIAN 2
ERIE, Pa. – Emilie Jones had five kills and two aces to lead Eisenhower to a 3-2 (25-15, 17-25, 15-25, 25-17, 15-7) win over Erie First Christian.
Caroline Smyth added four kills for the Knights.
