MIDDLETOWN — Even when her team is up by a good margin, Middletown High School varsity volleyball coach Jennifer Breiner said she expects her players to maintain their intensity on the court.
And that”s exactly what the Mustangs did on Tuesday as they beat the Tomales Braves 25-17, 25-15, 22-25, 25-12 in a non-league match at Middletown.
“They were still playing as hard as they could, even up 10,” Breiner said. “I was happy about that.”
Though the Mustangs did quite a bit of substituting in their game three loss, they bounced right back in the fourth set led by the strong serving of Jen Emberson, who reeled off 10 straight points from the service line to wipe out a Tomales lead and put Middletown back on top.
“She was serving very well,” Breiner said.
While a handful of Mustangs racked up some big numbers, Breiner said the entire squad is playing well right now.
“We”re playing very well and reading each other out there,” she said.
Kayla Wood”s 23 kills and six blocks paced the Mustangs. Kelsey Guzman added seven kills and two blocks, Jessica Boylan had five kills and two aces, and Haley Tallman added four kills. Emberson finished with five aces.
In other volleyball action Tuesday:
Ukiah def. Kelseyville
At Kelseyville, the Ukiah Wildcats avenged a four-game loss to Kelseyville last Thursday in Ukiah with a four-game win over the Knights, 25-16, 25-15, 20-25, 25-16, in non-league action.
Kaitlyn Goff”s hitting, Annie Macias” serving and Maille McCallister”s setting were all strong points for the Knights, especially in game three.
“Kaitlyn puts some balls away tonight that were crucial in the third game,” Kelseyville coach Donelle McCallister said.
Macias also had a string of service points in the third game, including three “hard aces,” according to McCallister.
Maille McCallister”s serving also helped the Knights.
“Maille was running all over the place. She ran her butt off on the court tonight,” Donelle McCallister said of her daughter”s effort.
“To Ukiah”s credit they played well,” McCallister added.
Girls” soccer
Clear Lake 3, K”ville 1
At Lakeport, Logan Brodnansky scored twice, her first goal snapping a 1-1 tie late in the first half, and the Clear Lake Cardinals turned back a determined Kelseyville squad in a North Central League I interlock girls” soccer match.
“They played well, better than they did last Thursday (a 4-0 Clear Lake win at Kelseyville),” Clear Lake coach Paul Larrea said. “It was only their third game. I think they”re going to sneak up on some people this year.”
Ashley Tipton”s 35-yard shot gave Clear Lake a 1-0 lead. Kelseyville tied it on a goal by Monique Santana.
“We had a breakdown in our defense and she got behind everybody and scored,” Larrea said.
Brodnansky”s direct kick from 20 yards out later in the first half put Clear Lake ahead to stay. She scored again in the second half to give the Cardinals (5-2-1) some breathing room.
Standouts for the Cardinals included Brodnansy, Megan McDonald, Annie Gall and Anisa Green, according to Larrea.
“She”s a workhorse in the middle for us,” Larrea said of Green. “She keeps us organized.”
Larrea also praised the play of Kelseyville”s Megan Andre.
“She”s an incredible player,” Larrea said. “She was everywhere.”
Clear Lake had 29 shots on goal to Kelseyville”s four. Five different Clear Lake players had at least four shots on goal.
St. Vincent 3, Middletown 0
At Petaluma, St. Vincent scored two goals in the final six minutes to fend off a strong challenge by the Middletown Mustangs, who lost their first game of the season in NCL I interlock play.
“They looked very good and were able to expose our weaknesses,” Middletown coach Louise Owen said of the St. Vincent club. “Our defense got worked pretty tough.”
St. Vincent scored in the eighth minute and it remained a 1-0 lead until the 74th minute.
“We needed to move some girls around to get more speed on the outside,” Owens said. “And our timing needs to be quicker.”
Middletown (4-1) had only three shots on goal.
“We had a couple of close opportunities,” Owens said.
St. Helena 6, Lower Lake 0
At Lower Lake, the Lower Lake Trojans were able to keep the score respectable but couldn”t generate any offense in an NCL I interlock loss to the St. Helena Saints.
Lower Lake (1-8) didn”t have a shot on goal against the Saints, who scored three times in each half.
“At the very beginning I thought we might have a chance to get some goals, but it didn”t happen,” Lower Lake coach Daniel Wieman said.
Lower Lake did pick up the pace of its play in the second half, according to Wieman.
“They played a great second half. They were talking to each other and moving the ball around more,” Wieman said.
Emmalena Illia turned in a solid game on the defensive end, according to Wieman.
“I think the girls did a good job holding the score down,” Wieman said.
Boys” soccer
St. Vincent 1, Middletown 0
At Middletown, St. Vincent broke through with a second-half goal to beat the Middletown Mustangs in NCL I interlock boys” soccer action.
“It was a pretty, pretty shot into the upper left corner,” Middletown coach Lee Hoage said of the game-winning goal. “Our goalie made a dive but couldn”t get it.”
Middletown (3-4) has lost two straight, both by a single goal, after reeling off three wins in a row.
“Our guys played a level down today and I was kind of disappointed with the performance,” Hoage said. “We have to regroup now with a two-game skid.”
Middletown hosts Cloverdale on Thursday.
