On Tuesday, October 7th, the Marshall High School volleyball teams traveled to Bridgeport to play the Red Hill High School Salukis in a non-conference doubleheader inside the Red Hill Junior High School gymnasium. Marshall’s varsity squad came into the match with a record of 18-6, coming in off a big win in straight sets over Westville the night before. Red Hill came in with a record of 3-16. The Salukis were coming in off a win over Union Dugger the night before in three sets.
From the opening serve by Red Hill when Marshall’s McKenzie Davis scored the first point of the match with a tip winner over the net, Marshall started a 9-0 run to start the opening set as Harper Richardson served four aces during that span.
Marshall would stay comfortably out in front and build on their 9-0 lead throughout the middle portion of the set. Three kills by Lilly Ross, a combination block by Lilly Ross and Ellie Delp, a kill by Delp, and a kill by Harper Richardson gave the Lions a 20-4 advantage heading into the final stretch of the first set.
From that point, the Lions coasted to finish the first set on kills by Harper Richardson and Ella Mattas, an ace served by Lilly Ross, and a tip winner by Ellie Delp. With Marshall winning the first set by the score of 25-7, the Lions looked to the second set to work on their net play, passing, and setting.
During the second set of the varsity match, a kill and serving ace by Harper Richardson pushed the Lions out to a 2-0 lead. Red Hill, however, responded by scoring three straight points to take their first and only lead of the match with the score 3-2. A tip winner by Richardson evened the set at three apiece, then Marshall went on a 10-3 run to take a 13-6 lead midway through. During the run, Lilly Ross scored two kills, while McKenzie Davis and Ellie Delp each scored a kill. Lilly Ross also served an ace as Marshall continued to put pressure on Red Hill’s defense.
Tip winners by Harper Richardson and Lilly Ross, as well as a kill by Ella Mattas, maintained Marshall’s seven-point lead with the score 17-10. After a side out in favor of Red Hill to make the score 17-11, Marshall’s Lilly Ross scored again for the Lions when she smashed a kill from the middle of the front row.
With the score Marshall 18, Red Hill 11, Ella Mattas stepped up to the serving line for Marshall, and she served the Lions all the way to match point with the score 24-11. Mattas served three aces, and Lilly Ross scored on a kill. Red Hill got a side out and scored three points to make the score 24-15, but Marshall’s Lilly Ross ended the match when she scored a kill to end the set with Marshall winning by the score of 25-15. In the end, Marshall defeated Red Hill in straight sets to improve their record to 19-6.
In the junior varsity match, Marshall’s young Lions could never generate any momentum throughout the match, and for the first time in weeks, Marshall struggled with passing, communicating, and setting. All three sets were close, but in the end, the junior varsity squad fell to the Salukis 25-22, 21-25, and 15-12.
The Lions return to the court this Thursday night when they host Newton in a pivotal conference match inside McNary Gymnasium. With both squads tied in the conference standings, this match will go a long way in deciding the conference title. Junior varsity action begins at 6:00 PM with the varsity match to follow. Let’s get a big crowd to McNary Gymnasium and cheer on these student athletes!
