The Crestwood Red Devils’ girls’ volleyball team has yet to hit their stride, as their slow start continued after being swept by Chagrin Valley Conference Valley Division foe Lutheran West 25-16, 25-21, 25-21 last Thursday night in Rocky River.
“We hung with Lutheran West,” said Coach Wanda Hoffman. “It was only our third match, and it was their sixth match, so they had a couple of extra matches under their belt than we did. We were doing some nice things and making some mental plays that physically did not land where they needed to, but they were great ideas.”
Although Crestwood (1-2, 1-1) has not hit the ground running to start the season, the 27-year coach is confident that the Red Devils have plenty of time to right the ship, as they have only competed in three matches.
On Thursday, Crestwood’s greatest obstacle came in the closing stretch of each set.
In the first set, the Red Devils only trailed 18-15 but Lutheran West pulled away when junior setter/outside hitter Alivia Adams keyed the Longhorns to a 5-0 run, all coming when she served, giving Lutheran West a comfortable 23-15 advantage.
“She rattled off quite a few points that we could not answer,” acknowledged Hoffman. “She did the same thing in the second set when it was tight, she got on a run, and we had trouble stopping her otherwise we were matched well with them.”
In the second set, Adams once again ignited Lutheran West, this time with a big rally, as the Red Devils were in control by holding a 20-14 advantage but once Adams stepped to the service line, the set once again was flipped on its head. The Longhorns’ junior fueled a 7-0 run, pushing Lutheran West ahead 21-20.
Crestwood stemmed the rally, finally scoring on a side-out, knotting the set at 21-21 but after the Red Devils committed a serving error, Lutheran West finished off its comeback victory.
Hoffman noted that the Red Devils serve receiving game was sharp, but several hits were just off the mark, squandering several scoring opportunities.
“Our serve receive has improved immensely this year, the girls are putting in a lot of hard work and doing a nice job, and we were proud of them,” she added. “When we were attacking, we were trying some good things, and it would just come out a little bit. We struggled at points.”
She said that as dynamic as Adams was when serving, the Longhorns’ real advantage came in the front row, as when Adams was in the back, Lutheran West had its best attackers manning the front line.
In the third set, Crestwood once again mounted an early lead by racing ahead 6-3 but Adams led the Longhorns on another big run when she served. The Red Devils stayed within striking distance, only trailing 20-18 in the final moments of the third set but the Longhorns executed in the clutch, securing the 25-21 victory to complete the sweep.
Hoffman acknowledged that Lutheran West’s advantage came on the clutch points.
“They came on a little bit stronger at the end,” she said. “We made a couple of passing errors, not anything crazy bad but again it was a close match, and it was tit for tat the whole way, they just made the extra passes.”
The Red Devils’ may have lost two of their first three matches but Hoffman said that Crestwood will have opportunities to get more comfortable, as its schedule will become busier over the next several weeks, with several tournaments on the horizon as well as its final slew of CVC Valley Division matches before it makes its move to the Greater Portage Athletic Conference.
Hoffman praised the level of competition that the CVC Valley Division has provided for Crestwood.
Aiding the Red Devils this season will be the returning experience, as they return much of their rotation from last year in senior outside hitter/middle blocker Abby Hayes, senior defensive setters Macy Davis and Piper Seibold, senior utility player Jackie Blasiole, senior right side hitter Grace Harper and junior setter Haley Podhil.
“We are trying to get better at the girls’ visually seeing the court and getting the combination,” she said. “We have the same setters last year as we did this year but different positioning with our hitters so we are working on that.”
Following a home duel against CVC Valley Division foe Berkshire on Tuesday night, the Red Devils will hit the road and compete in a tournament at Massillon Washington High School on Saturday morning in Stark County beginning at 9 a.m.
