GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: Lake Orion avenges Oxford with district sweep
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
HOLLY — Being a Final Four team each of the past two years, Lake Orion didn’t always play like a superior volleyball team this season.
The Dragons had their fair share of ebbs and flows and ups and downs.
Yet when it counted most, Lake Orion jacked it up a notch Wednesday night in the Division 1 district semifinals at Holly High School.
After losing to neighboring rival Oxford — honorable mention in the D-1 polls — twice in the regular season, including in OAA Red Division play and at a late-season quad match, Lake Orion posted a 3-0 sweep of the pesky Wildcats to advance to the district finals for the fifth time in the last six seasons and third straight year.
The Dragons (21-16-0) prevailed 25-23, 25-8 and 25-22 to
advance to Thursday’s 7 p.m. district finals at Holly against Clarkston. The Wolves upended Holly in straight sets, 3-0, in the second semifinals match.
“I hope (another run) can happen again,” said Lake Orion coach Tony Scavarda. “We still were a little sloppy, but If we can win the serve-pass battle, there’s not many teams that can match up with us at the net.”
Lake Orion showed flashes of being a dominant team Wednesday, especially in Game 2, as well as down the stretch in the first and third games when the score was too close for comfort.
“We played pretty clean in set two, and when we play clean you see what we can do,” said Scavarda. “As long as we can control that first contact, that’s where our struggles have been this year. When that first contact is sloppy, we struggle and we can’t use our size advantage in the front row. Not too many teams can match up with our size up front.”
Sophomore Nina Horning led Lake Orion’s balanced effort with 10 kills. Senior Lauren Staruch added nine kills, Kendall Robertson slammed seven kills, junior Piper Talaga had six kills and senior Reagan Goeke chipped in with five kills and six blocks. Junior Jaina Macaulay had 30 assists and junior Malinda Brunk supplied four aces for the Dragons.
Oxford held leads of 7-2 and 16-10 in the first set before Lake Orion got untracked. The Dragons closed the game with a 15-7 run to overtake the Wildcats. The set ended with a block-kill from Horning.
Game 2 was essentially all Lake Orion. The Dragons led early 7-2, upped the advantage to 17-4 thanks to a 10-2 spurt, and closed with a 8-4 run to take the commanding 2-0 advantage.
Oxford (23-9-0) led 6-5 in the third game before falling behind 16-12. The Wildcats fought back to tie the set at 18-18 and again at 21-21 before falling back. Lake Orion closed with a 4-1 run and finished off the game with another Horning kill.
Oxford could not defeat Lake Orion for the third time this season.
“Lake Orion has always been a strong team. They are always one of the top teams in the state and we knew it was going to be a battle,” offered Oxford coach Brian Kim. “Our girls were ready to play. There were some aspects of the game where we anticipated playing a little bit better. It happens.”
Sophomore Rachel Townsend had seven kills and three blocks for Oxford, while senior Molly Miller had five kills and four aces for the Wildcats.
Oxford cracked the state rankings for the first time in several years this autumn, reaching as high as No. 9 after finishing in a tie for second place in the depth-laden OAA Red Division with Rochester Stoney Creek.
Lake Orion will take on OAA-Red champion Clarkston for the fourth time this season on Thursday night, as the Dragons will have only 24 hours to prepare for their rivals to the west.
“I like the quick turnaround a little bit, especially for these kids. They don’t have to have a day to overthink it, just come out and play,” said Scavarda.”This will be our fourth time playing Clarkston, so there won’t be any secrets on either side of the net. We’ll be ready.”
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