The Bellefontaine Lady Chieftain volleyball team kicked off its season in dramatic fashion Tuesday night, defeating a friendly rival in the Northwestern Warriors in a five-set thriller.
The Warriors came out swinging, taking the first set 25-22. But the Lady Chiefs responded with grit and determination, claiming sets two and three with scores of 25-19 and 25-21.
The Warriors did not go down easily, rallying to win set four 25-20 and forcing a decisive fifth set.
The fifth set was a thriller that needed extra points to close out the match. The Lady Chieftains were able to dig deep and secure the victory with an 18-16 finish.
Bellefontaine saw many stellar performances. Senior standout Kelsie Snapp led the charge with an impressive 24 kills and 22 digs. Ava Layman delivered a well-rounded performance with 17 kills, 20 digs, and three aces, setter Madilynn Zedeker dished out a game-high 59 assists, and Jillian Ullom anchored the defense with 31 digs. Layman, Zedeker, and Ullom combined for serving perfection, with no serving errors in a combined 46 serves.
Kaeliegh Flora added the Lady Chiefs’ third double-double with 10 kills and 17 digs. Presley Vigansky contributed seven kills and two aces. Ari Rangle made her presence felt at the net with three solo blocks and four kills.
Bellefontaine will look to carry this momentum into Thursday’s home matchup against Riverside.
In other season-opening volleyball action, the Benjamin Logan Raiders took on the Waynesfield-Goshen Tigers, earning a straight set sweep: 25-12, 25-14, 25-14.
Abby Vance led the attack with nine kills, followed closely by Georgia Daniels, who earned seven kills while adding five aces. More stat leaders follow below:
- Summer Cline: 5 kills, 12 assists, 2 aces
- Kylie Harner: 12 assists, 1 ace
- Lilly Kerns: 4 kills, 1 ace
- Annika Chappell: 4 kills, 3 blocks
- Caroline Spriggs: 2 kills, 1 block
The Lady Raiders will prepare for their next contest, a road affair against the Cavalry Christian Spartans.
The Indian Lake Lady Lakers beat Riverside in straight sets: 25-8, 25-8, 25-6.
Cami Bailey led the Lakers with a double-double, tallying 10 kills and 11 digs while adding an impressive 7 aces. More offensive prowess was flashed from Annie Rapp and Courtney Altstaetter, each with five kills. Riley Ross led the defense with 18 digs and tacked on five assists, a department Addyson Roby led with 24 assists. She demonstrated her well-rounded ability by contributing eight digs and six kills.
The Lady Lakers move to 3-0 on the season and will look to keep their unbeaten season alive on Thursday against the West Liberty-Salem Tigers at home.
The West Liberty-Salem Tigers traveled to battle the Triad Cardinals in the season opener, earning a victory in four sets: 25-19, 27-25, 22-25, 25-16.
Naomi Cole was the offensive star, totaling 17 kills while adding an ace serve. Reagan Winters led the defensive effort with her 14 digs. More stat leaders follow below:
- Reese Winters: 11 kills, 2 digs, 1 ace
- Kiersten Stoll: 7 kills, 9 digs, 2 aces
- Lilli Heminger: 5 kills, 3 digs, 2 aces
- Ava Poppe: 4 kills, 6 digs
- Kenna Wright: 3 digs
- Lyndee Harrison: 5 digs, 7 aces, 21 assists
- Sophia Landon: 2 digs, 18 assists
The Lady Tigers will travel to Indian Lake to take on the undefeated Lady Lakers on Thursday.
In Junior Varsity contests, Indian Lake beat Riverside in two sets: 25-19, 25-12.
Stat leaders for the Lady Lakers are as follows:
- Claire Tidwell: 8 kills
- Madison Davis: 5 kills
- Addison Shoe: 3 kills- Riverside
- Lily Zwiebel: 2 kills.-Riverside
- Lux Kipker: 9 assists and 5 digs
Riverside’s stat leaders are also listed:
- Ellie Zwiebel: 9 assists.
- Piper Robinson: 4 aces- Indian Lake
- Layna Nessler: 3 aces-Indian Lake
The West Liberty-Salem junior varsity team beat Triad in two sets: 25-20, 25-17. Leaders are as follows for the Tigers:
- Emma Schmelzer: 2 aces, 7 digs, 1 kill, 7 assists
- Sydney Conley: 4 aces, 4 digs, 1 kill
- Evie Decker: 2 digs
- Audrianna Evilsizor: 4 aces, 1 dig, 2 blocks
- Olive Matthews: 1 dig, 2 kills, 2 assists
- Emma Liggett: 2 aces, 11/12 serve receive, 5 digs, 5 kills,
- Kendal Carroll: 1 dig,4 kills
- Kylee Bell: 4/5 serve receive, 3 digs
- Loretta Moxley: 1 dig
Riverside Junior High traveled to Botkins for a non-conference match. The 7th-grade Lady Pirates came up short against the Lady Trojans in a two-set match, 25-21, 25-17. Leading the Lady Pirates were the following:
- Bella Shulz: 7 points with 1 ace
- Avery Wheeler: 6 points and 1 tip
- Bella Beaty: 1 point with 1 ace and 1 tip
- Bella Monnin: 1 point with 1 ace
- Gracie Popp: 1 point with 1 ace
- Ruth Morrison: 1 point with 1 ace
The 8th Grade Lady Pirates showed lots of determination and toughness in a hard-fought 3-set match; however, they also suffered defeat at the hands of the Lady Trojans, 25-6, 18-25, 21-25. Leading the way for the Lady Pirates were:
- Lillian Jackson: 18 points with 10 aces, 1 dig, and 1 kill
- Bella Robinson: 4 points with 3 aces and 1 tip
- Sofia Butler: 4 points with 1 ace and 1 kill
- Izzy Hudson: 2 points with 1 ace
- Gracie Rench: 2 points
