The Kirtland Hornets are gaining momentum heading into the second half of the season.
The Hornets defeated Euclid on Wednesday, 25-15, 25-11, 25-23, for their third straight win and improved to 6-7 overall.
“The last few games, the girls have been progressing and playing better and better,” said Kirtland coach Bob Schenosky. “I think this is the next step for them. They jelled today and played an excellent match.”
Kirtland cruised to wins in the first two games then had to hang on to earn the sweep.
“I think Euclid played a very solid game the third game,” Schenosky said. “They’ve got some good players and they scrap. They really hustle in the back row. That’s what I expected out of the entire match. I’m impressed with the way they played in the third game and I think our girls came back at the end and showed a lot of heart today being down in that last game and being able to pull it out.”
The Hornets dominated early thanks to the perfect combination of solid serve receive, setting and attacking at the net.
“We played the front row well,” Schenosky said. “Our serve receive was excellent. We served well. Across the board they did a great job.”
Even without starting setter Sarah Steigerwald, who sat out with a minor injury, the Hornets didn’t skip a beat.
Jordan Stephens stepped in and distributed the ball to the Kirtland hitters.
“We had somebody step in who hasn’t set before, one of our hitters, and she came in and did a great job,” Schenosky said. “She did great. We had no issues. She played excellent.”
The Hornets were just as dominant when holding the serve.
“I think one of the keys was we were aggressive with our serve,” Schenosky said. “We were moving the serve around a lot. We had a lot of movement on the ball and I think it was difficult to pick up. More importantly, we blocked well and when the ball came back our hitters did an exceptional job.”
Kirtland resumes Chagrin Valley Conference Valley Division play on Thursday when they travel to Harvey.
