MIDDLETOWN — Some nights you have to work a little harder than others and that was certainly the case for both the Middletown Mustangs and Clear Lake Cardinals on Thursday in a North Central League I varsity volleyball match that went the distance.
Middletown ultimately prevailed 25-22, 25-21, 18-25, 16-25, 15-8 to improve to 3-2 in league action, the same record as Clear Lake.
“Our defense was on fire tonight,” Middletown coach Vanessa Davis said. “Everyone was making some incredible passes. Everyone played their part and we won.”
Abi Hibner’s 15 kills and six blocks led the way for Middletown although the 6-foot-3 senior had plenty of help from her teammates during the five-set marathon. Bella Dubois added 15 kills and and two blocks while Abbey Brown, who moved from outside hitter to middle hitter, finished with seven kills and four blocks.
Middletown won without starters Shea Rockwell and Taylor Griffin in the lineup, both out with injuries.
“Their big girl (Hibner) blocked the crap out of us,” Clear Lake veteran coach Marci Psalmonds said. “She definitely blocked some shots in our faces. She made a difference.”
You won’t get an argument from Davis on that point, but the Middletown coach said it all came down to defense for her Mustangs.
“The defense … I can’t say it enough. We had some excellent digs,” Davis said.
Libero Taelor Roderick led the way with 25 digs but setters Yasamine Heidary and Alessandra Diaz also got into the act with 11 and seven digs, respectively. Heidary also had 17 assists while Diaz had 15.
“She (Heidary) had some great sets tonight,” Davis said.
To the Cardinals’ credit, they dug themselves a big hole by losing the first two sets yet battled back to send the match to its five-set limit.
Shaelyn McIntire led Clear Lake with 11 kills, 14 service points, four aces and 22 digs. Other leaders were Madi Ferguson with 26 digs, nine point and two aces, Kylie Udy with 26 assists, Emma Boatright with 10 kills and seven blocks, and Joy Ingalls with six kills and 10 points.
Middletown hits the road Thursday to play St. Helena while Clear Lake returns home to face undefeated Kelseyville.
Middletown won the junior varsity match 25-18, 28-30, 15-9 to maintain a perfect league record (5-0).
“I’m really proud of the girls for pulling it together,” Middleotwn coach Nikeedra Davis said.
Nina Jekel had five kills for Middletown.
“She just did a great job, angled herself on the net and got some good tip coverage,” Davis said of Jekel.
Davis also praised the play of Maggie Rodgers, the team’s libero.
“She had some incredible digs and her back-row hitting was very consistent.”
For Clear Lake (3-2), Shelby Ingham led the team with five kills while Felisa Cortez served four straight points during Clear Lake’s marathon second-set win. She had another four-point run, three of them aces, in the third set.
In other volleyball action Tuesday:
Kelseyville def. Cloverdale
At Kelseyville, the Kelseyville Knights brushed aside the Cloverdale Eagles 25-10, 25-16, 25-15 in NCL I action, improving to 5-0 in league play.
Allison Bryant overpowered the Eagles (3-2) up front with 14 kills while libero Payton Conrad recorded 18 digs. Setter Paige Bour added 18 assists. Bour, Grace Davidson and Kat Brown each finished with three aces. Brown also had the first block of her volleyball career.
Kelseyville went 1-3 on Saturday in the Los Medanos Tournament, one that featured a field of Division I and II teams. The Knights’ lone win came against Pittsburg two sets to none. Kelseyville lost 2-0 to both Miramonte and Santa Rosa and 2-1 to Pleasant Valley.
“It was a good experience and the kids played tough,” Kelseyville head coach Donelle McCallister said.
Standouts for the Knights were Conrad (62 digs), Bour (46 digs) and Bryant (42 kills).
“She was freaking awesome,” McCallister said of Bour.
The Knights resume league play Thursday against Clear Lake in Lakeport.
Kelseyville beat Cloverdale in the JV match 25-14, 25-12.
Fort Bragg def. Lower Lake
At Lower Lake, the Lower Lake Trojans put up quite a fight in the first set but couldn’t maintain that high energy output against the Fort Bragg Timberwolves, who came away with a 25-23, 25-14, 25-20 NCL I victory.
“We played hard in the first set but we were flat in the second set,” Lower Lake head coach Niki Emberson said. “When they get tired they break down in communication.”
Shelby Sapeta’s nine kills and 13 digs were a bright spot for the Trojans (0-5). Lily Griffin added a team-best six aces to go along with four kills, and libero Maria Santos had 18 digs.
Fort Bragg also won the JV match 25-13, 25-14.
Lower Lake travels to Willits on Thursday.
Upper Lake def. RVC
At Santa Rosa, Colleen Doyle reeled off 14 consecutive points at the service line in the third set as the Upper Lake Cougars swept the Rincon Valley Christian Eagles 25-18, 25-23, 25-22 in NCL II action.
Upper Lake (3-5) trailed 11-1 in the third set when Doyle stepped to the service line. When the Cougars finally lost serve, they had a 15-12 lead thanks to Doyle.
Adriana Lopez had five kills in the second set and Kaila Willard had four kills in the third set for Upper Lake.
“She kept us together the whole match,” Upper Lake coach Dani Paige Gudmundson Pena said of the senior Lopez.
There was no JV match.
Upper Lake is home Thursday to face Roseland Collegiate Prep.
