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’Cats rally to top ’Skins

TO THE OUTSIDE — Indian Creek senior Savannah Shanley sets a pass while Edison’s Kayla Huff (15) and Skylar Fankhauser look on during Thursday’s four-set win by the Wildcats. Also looking on are Redskins teammate Sarah Mazzaferro (12) and Sydney Karas. (Mike Mathison)

WINTERSVILLE — And just like that, the Edison Wildcats are the winners of the annual backyard brawl volleyball series.

After losing the first set, 25-18, Leah Eft’s squad clawed its way back and won three straight, 26-24, 25-23, 25-23, to beat rival Indian Creek Thursday night.

“This rivalry has been and, I believe, always will be exciting and competitive,” said an overjoyed Eft. “It seems like no matter the skill level on each team, this game is always back-and-forth and emotional. I am not sure how long it’s been since Edison has won both of these games in one year, but I know it hasn’t been in very recent history.”

Indian Creek went up 13-10 in Game 1 and didn’t look back. Tips by Chelsea Connor and Renee Antonelli plus a Taylor Mazzaferro kill put the hosts up 20-12. The teams exchanged errors and an Antonelli slam put the Redskins up 22-15. Edison’s Allison Crawford produced three nice kills but a Sydney Karas smash and an Edison net error ended the game.

The Redskins again led for the majority of Game 2, after taking a 5-4 lead on an Antonelli kill. Two Karas smacks and two Sarah Mazzaferro blocks and an ace made it 12-5. Edison kept fighting back, however, as a kill by Mckenzie Morrison; two Crawford tips; and a MiKayla Petrisko kill forced Indian Creek to use a timeout, up 23-20. Another Morrison kill plus two Redskin net errors tied the game at 24. A block by Edison’s Kayla Huff and a Morrison slam closed out the set.

“Tonight was a tale of two emotions for us,” said Redskin head coach Molly Edgerly. “We started out strong and the girls were full of emotion and excitement. Our positive energy led us to a 25-18 win in the first set and pushed us into a lead for the second set. However, we got comfortable and started playing with less intensity and Edison did a great job of feeding off of that. Coach Eft’s squad is extremely resilient; they won the second set and never looked back.”

Game 3 was neck-and-neck until a Crawford kill made it 18-17 and Edgerly had to use a timeout. Three Indian Creek errors and a Morrison kill made it 22-18. Four slams by Antonelli brought the hosts close, but a Huff tip and a hitting error by the Redskins gave the Wildcats the win.

“I was proud of the way the team didn’t give up after a couple of big deficits throughout the night and after losing the first set pretty handedly,” Eft stated. “We always have to adapt to things that Coach Edgerly and the Creek girls do. They are great athletes with great volleyball IQs and kept us on our toes.”

The final set was worth the admission charge as the game featured 12 knotted scores and six lead changes before Edison took over 15-14 on a Crawford kill. Edison continued to build a lead, powered by the arms of Crawford and Morrison and led 23-20 before an Indian Creek timeout. A T. Mazzaferro block and kill, plus a Karas slam brought the home team within one (24-23). An Indian Creek service error sealed the deal for the Wildcats.

Edison (9-9) was led by Crawford with 22 kills, four aces, one block, 10 digs, and six points; Morrison with 11 kills, five digs, and four points; Huff with five kills, one block, 35 assists, three digs, and eight points; and Skylar Fankhauser with 14 digs and seven points. Petrisko added one kill; Steph Judy had four digs; Allison Grimes produced one dig, one kill, and seven points; Kiersten Long had two points and two digs; and Faith Hoobler posted two points.

Individually for Creek, now 8-9, Antonelli produced 21 kills, nine digs and one ace; Karas had four kills, five digs, one block, and one ace; T. Mazzaferro had six kills, three blocks and one dig; Connor added two kills; and S. Mazzaferro posted two kills, two digs, two aces, and one block. Setter Savannah Shanley had 35 assists, two aces, and one dig; and libero Caitlin Shannon had nine digs.

“As a team, we need to start focusing on the small stuff and not letting our mistakes get the best of us,” Edgerly stated. “I have to applaud junior Renee Antonelli for putting up a fight for us offensively and killing it at the net.

“We have two more games and I know the girls will get it together and finish strong, putting us in a good position to make a run at the post season.”

Both teams are off until Monday when Indian Creek travels to St. Clairsville and Edison visits Oak Glen.

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