4:03 p.m. CORRECTION: The second half of this article was previously cut off.
By Cort Reynolds
Playing at home, the Ada High School volleyball team lost in straight sets to tall and athletic league leader Crestview in a Northwest Conference match Tuesday night, October 4.
The 25-7, 25-13, 25-9 loss dropped the Lady Bulldog record to 10-10 overall and 1-6 in the NWC.
The dominating Knight girls squad clinched at least a share of the NWC title with the win. They improved to 12-6 and 7-0 in the NWC to stay in sole possession of first place with one league match remaining.
Leipsic has finished 7-1 in the NWC, while Lincolnview and Allen East are 4-2 after the Mustangs beat the Lancers 3-2 Tuesday.
The talented Knights had too much size and hitting ability for a still young and building Ada team to contend with.
"I am pleased with the girls effort," said Crestview head coach Tammy Gregory. "They were consistent and did a nice job mixing it up. We were balanced."
"I thought there were some long rallies, we fought and hustled," said Ada head coach Kyleigh Woodruff. "They ran a fast offense."
Crestview jumped to a 10-1 lead in set one with Laci McCoy serving.
McCoy then had a kill, followed a hit to the open short spot by Daicy Robinson to make it 13-3. A Cali Gregory two-handed tip sparked a 10-1 Knight run.
Kills by McCoy, Adelyn Figley and Gregory ignited the flurry. Gregory capped it with consecutive service winners.
Ada fought back briefly with two points and a block kill that landed on the sideline. But Figley finished the set with big smash at 25-7.
A Robinson kill off a Knight blocker fell to the floor to pull Ada within 2-1 in game two. Freshman Haley McCoy smashed a clean winner to the back row. She then executed a block kill to make it 6-2.
A big smash by junior Robinson ricocheted into the stands. Lily Baumgartner's outside hit was blocked out of bounds, but an Ada serve sailed just long for 7-4.
Josie Kulwicki served four straight points, capped by another Haley McCoy clean kill from the middle. Crestview inched ahead 12-5 before hitting long to end a rally.
Sophomore Figley hammered an outside kill, but an Ada save fell in behind the back row for 13-7. Senior Emilee Huffer rifled an ace for Ada.
A well-placed Robinson attack edged the Bulldog within 14-9. Baumgartner's outside hit was blocked into the net. But Figley rose up and hammered a clean kill to the open back.
Myia Etzler ended a long rally with a big kill, but then tipped into the top of the net to make it 16-11. Gregory's quick tip to the center gave the Knights a side out, prompting a Bulldog timeout at 18-11.
Nevaeh Ross served three points before hitting the top of the net. Laci McCoy's kill and then a hitting error put the score at 21-13.
A hard two-hand tip by Gregory was followed by her ace. Ada hit wide and a Gregory line-drive service winner ended the game, 25-13.
Ada junior setter Autumn Andreasen started set three with a block kill winner. Robinson followed with another big block kill for a 3-2 lead.
The 6-2 Etzler responded with three huge left outside smashes and a block kill to take the lead for good. Sophomore Figley served six consecutive points for a 9-3 margin.
A back row kill by libero Courtney Sumner ended the Knight run. Crestview then spurted ahead 20-5 with Ross serving eight points in a row.
The Knights won a couple of long rallies before a sideline smash went just out to make it 20-6. A cross-court kill by Mariah King caught the sideline for a 3-0 flurry to make it 20-8.
A Kennedy Crider tip ended the mini-run by Ada.
Gregory served an ace to reach match point. Emily Lichtie hit a kill to finish it off, 25-9.
Ada senior libero Sumner mustered 15 digs to add to her program career record total, and served one ace.
Andreasen dealt eight assists and came up with 10 digs to go with two blocks.
Sophomore Lily Baumgartner compiled two kills and five digs.
Junior Robinson knocked down a team-high five kills and added three blocks.
Junior defensive specialist Josie Phillips came up with 10 digs. Freshman DS Alyssa Madison added an ace and four digs.
Gregory paced the victors with 30 assists, eight kills and seven aces on 18-18 serving. Etzler knocked down 11 kills while Figley hit 10 kills and served 19-19.
Laci McCoy contributed six kills. Ross had nine digs and two aces, while Ellie Kline amassed 10 digs and a pair of aces.
The Bulldog junior varsity also lost in straight sets to drop their record to 13-6.
Ada hosts non-league foe Upper Sandusky Monday, Oct. 10 in their "Dig for a Cure" cancer benefit contest. They then conclude the league regular season at last-place Spencerville (3-13, 0-6 NWC) Oct. 11.
Crestview can clinch an outright NWC title by beating three-time defending champion and arch-rival Lincolnview on the road Tuesday, Oct. 11.
The Lancers (13-5, 4-2 NWC) can still force a second straight shared title for the rival Knights with Leipsic if they upset Crestview.
"Lincolnview is a good team, we know we will have to bring our A game," said Gregory. "There is always a lot of emotion against them, and it will be a great match.
"Our focus will be on no errors and being aggressive with no letdowns. It is also a great preparation for going into the tournament," she added.
