LAKEPORT >> Don’t look know, but the Clear Lake Cardinals have jumped into the 2016 North Central League I varsity volleyball race with both claws fully extended.
Valerie Hutton led the way with 10 kills, four blocks and two aces while birthday girl Kylie Udy finished with 27 assists and three aces as the Cardinals beat the Lower Lake Trojans 25-20, 25-9, 25-7 on Tuesday evening, pushing their league record to 5-0.
“They (Trojans) really played well in that first set and I thought it was going to be a tough match, but we kind of cruised through the last two games,” Clear Lake coach Marci Psalmonds said. “I don’t know what happened to them. They had a 19-17 lead on us in that first game before we came back.”
“I’m not exactly sure what happened either,” Lower Lake coach Darcie Schmidt said. “We did have one girl leave with an injury and we may have lost our focus.”
Rachelle Wagner sustained an injury to the same right knee she hurt (torn ACL) during the 2015-16 wrestling season.
“She was digging the ball really well,” Schmidt said of Wagner.
Hutton’s 10 kills came on only 15 arm swings. Kiana Richardson added nine kills, two blocks and six digs while Corin Alakszay finished with five kills on only eight arm swings. She also reeled off 12 straight service points, three of them aces, in the third and final set.
Udy, Clear Lake’s sophomore setter playing in her first varsity season, turned 15 on Tuesday.
“She played really well,” Psalmonds said.
Clear Lake hits the road Thursday evening to play at St. Helena before returning home Oct. 4 to square off with Kelseyville (5-0), the only other undefeated team in the league.
In junior varsity action, Clear Lake defeated Lower Lake 25-13, 10-25, 15-9 behind five kills from Shelby Butcher, eight service points from Lilli Hill and seven assists from Shalyn McIntire. The Cardinals are 4-1 in league play.
For the Lower Lake JVs, Shelby Sapeta contributed two kills and two blocks while Jordan Rivera and Tessa Biasotti each had seven service points. The Trojans are 2-3 in league.
