Lenox Sweeps Mount Everett
LENOX, Mass. – The Lenox volleyball team Saturday used a long run on the serve of Kelsey Kirchner to take control of the second set and never looked back in a three-set win over Mount Everett.
Kirchner put away a pair of aces during a five-point run that erased a 9-6 deficit and gave Lenox the lead for good in the set.
With that momentum, the Millionaires went on to a 25-13, 25-18, 25-13 win for their second straight win and a 2-1 record this fall.
“We always start off a little bit slow,” Lenox coach Steve Laurin said. “It’s just the nerves. Once we get going, we feel like we’re in our element, and we start putting these balls where they need to go to get points.”
The first set also was tight until Lenox libero Anna Nealon took the ball to serve with her team ahead, 12-9. Nealon served five straight points, including two of her four aces, to take control of the set.
Hailey Armold put the set out of reach with a four-set run that featured three aces and a kill by Kirchner.
Armold finished the afternoon with nine aces to go with five kills.
Kirchner finished with a team-high six kills.
Mount Everett rebounded at the start of the second set to build a small lead.
Kelly Krom was a big reason why. She put away two kills on Mercedes Kosik’s serve early and recorded an ace of her own to make it 8-4.
A couple of rotations later, though, Lenox got the ball to Kirchner, who benefited from two kills by Sai Meesala and gave up the serve with the Millionaires ahead, 11-10.
Meesala later served four straight points to push the lead to 21-13 on an ace. The Eagles fended off three set points – two on Jordyn Stockwell’s serve – before Lenox was able to get out with the 25-18 win.
Mount Everett coach Parker Snyder said her team came into the weekend matinee a little short-handed.
“I feel like our girls tried really hard today,” Snyder said. “We were missing three of our varsity players, so a lot of our JV girls and our swingers who can go back and forth between JV and varsity really stepped up.
“A lot of girls were outside their comfort zone. We had our captain, Caroline Hayes, she’s the best setter I’ve ever seen, but we had to have her hit today. She wasn’t too excited about it, but she can really hit. That’s why I thought to have her hit today, because we were missing three of our hitters, and we had four setters, including her.”
Lenox got strong quarterbacking from Kelly Nicotra and Etta Schnackenberg, who finished with nine assists apiece.
“It always makes me happy when we see the three hits happen,” Laurin said. “Our back row puts that ball up, gets it right to our setter, and the setter puts it right where she wants it. And she has options. Sometimes she’s got four options – with Anna [Nealon] in the back row, she’s a back row hitter. Sometimes she has five options. That’s really nice.
“They rose to the occasion today for sure.”
Lenox took an early lead in the third set and stretched it to 10 points with a six-point run on the serve of Abigail Winger to get to 20-10. Frankie Guachione served three points to earn match point at 24-12, and the Millionaires put away the match two serves later.
Lenox (2-1) goes to Easthampton on Monday.
Mount Everett (1-5) goes to Monument Mountain on Monday.
Video: Kelsey Kirchner gets the kill for Lenox in Saturday’s win over Mount Everett.
Video: Lenox’s Anna Nealon gets the kill on Kelly Nicotra’s set in Saturday’s win over Mount Everett.