ELIZABETH - Wirt County senior left-hander Emily Ohrn served for the final seven points of the match here Wednesday evening and the defending Class A state volleyball champion Tigers cruised to a 25-17, 25-21 and 25-14 sweep of visiting St. Marys in the season-opener for both programs.
Ohrn finished with match-highs of 15 points, five aces and a baker's dozen kills as the Blue Devils of head coach Liz Eddy didn't take their first lead of the match until Kristin Grose registered a kill for the first point of the third set.
The Tigers of head coach Janet Frazier watched new setter Miriam Smith, who has been working in that capacity for less than a week, post 25 assists.
Article Photos
Photo by Jay W. Bennett
Wirt County’s Makayla Bell, left, and Emily Ohrn get instructions from the Tiger coaching staff during a timeout at Wednesday night’s home match against St. Marys.
Playing for the first time without senior Sarah Hennen, who died unexpectedly in January, the orange and black still got solid production in the hitting department aside from Ohrn. Senior Taylor Watson and fellow spikers Brandy Bunch and Sydney Summers collected seven downed spikes apiece.
"Can you imagine what it (the season) would've been like with her (Hennen)," Frazier pondered after the match. "We wish we still had her, even if she was sitting on the end of the bench with a broken ankle."
Wirt County, which heads to Capital for a triangular on Wednesday, never trailed in the opening set after Mady Campbell came through with the first of her nine service tallies on an ace. Leah Haines recorded consecutive points thanks to Ohrn putting a pair to the floor as the visitors fell behind 9-2 early. Kills by Kali Wilson and Shanley Glover kept the opening set within a half dozen at 15-9 and 16-10, but the Tigers pushed in front 20-10 and took the set on a St. Marys attack error.
Fact Box
Wirt County d.
St. Marys 25-17, 25-21, 25-14
St. Marys (0-1) scoring: Shanley Glover 3, Jenessa Mullenix 3, Kristin Grose 4 (2 aces), Alyce Bailey 1, Sarah West 1 (1), Katie Mixer 3 (2), Mykaela Handschumacher 2, Kelsey Kirkpatrick 2; Assists: Mullenix 6; Kills: Glover 4, Grose 4, West 1, Kirkpatrick 1, Kali Wilson 1; Kill-blocks: Glover 1, Grose 5
Wirt County (1-0) scoring: Mady Campbell 9 (2), Makayla Bell 5 (1), Leah Haines 4 (1), Emily Ohrn 15 (5), Taylor Watson 6 (2), Miriam Smith 1, Liz Adams 1; Assists: Smith 25, Ohrn 1, Campbell 1; Kills: Ohrn 13, Watson 7, Smith 1, Sydney Summers 7, Brandy Bunch 7; Kill-blocks: Watson 1, Ohrn 1, Bunch 1
JV score: Wirt County d. St. Marys 25-16, 25-17
St. Marys JV scoring: Cassy Trickett 1, Handschumacher 4, Bailey 1, Alex Smith 5, Mixer 1
Wirt County JV scoring: Cameron Brindo 7, Allie Bailey 1, Haley McCoy 6, Katie Tichnell 7, Gwynn Smith 4, Adams 1
Next matches: Parkersburg Catholic at St. Marys 6 p.m. today; Wirt County at Capital tri, 6 p.m. Wednesday.
At Brooke High School
Tyler Consolidated d.
Brooke 25-17, 25-15
Tyler Consolidated: Kills: Allison Wable 6, Abby Atkinson 4, Megan Carpenter 2, Haylea LeMasters 2, Sydney Reed 1, Bridget Matthews 1. Assists: Torrye Cline 12. Digs: Kerstyn Cline 4, Torrye Cline 3, Shay Yonaley 2, Carly Fletcher 2, Hilary Casteel 1. Blocks: Atkins 1, Carpenter 1. Scoring: Torrye Cline 9 (2 aces); Reed 6 (2 aces); Sydney Yoho 4, Yonaley 4 (2 aces), Kerstyn Cline 2.
Tyler Consolidated d.
Buckeye Local 25-8, 25-12
Tyler Consolidated (2-0): Kills: Wable 10, Atkinson 2, Carpenter 2, Reed 2, LeMasters 1. Assists: Torrye Cline 12. Digs: Reed 4, Casteel 3, Fletcher 2, Yonaley 1, Yoho 1, Lili Orr 1, Torrye Cline 1. Blocks: Wable 2, Atkinson 1, Carpenter 1. Scoring: Reed 13 (2 aces), Torrye Cline 11 (2 aces), Wable 3, Carpenter 3 (1 ace), Atkinson 2, Yoho 2, Yonaley 1.
Next match: Tyler Consolidated quad, 10 a.m. Saturday with John Marshall, St. Clairsville and Linsly.
At Paden City
Paden City d. Linsly 25-4, 25-16
Paden City: Scoring: Logan Cosper 11 (1 ace), Lynnsie Parsons 11, Josie Fox 4, Myah Charkawi 6, Graeson Baker 9, Haley Hizer 1, Taylor Cosper 8. Kills: Parsons 12, Baker 5, Hizer 3, Megan Pierce 2. Sets: L. Cosper 41 (33 assists). Digs: Parsons 4, Fox 8, Charkawi 4, Baker 5, Hizer 3, Cydney Blatt 1, Taylor Cosper 2.
Paden City d. Hundred 25-16, 25-10
Paden City: Scoring: L. Cosper 4, Parsons 10 (2 aces), Fox 6 (2 aces), Charkawi 6, Baker 8 (1 ace), T. Cosper 16 (2 aces). Kills: Parsons 3, Fox 1, Hizer 4, Pierce 4. Setting: L. Cosper 31 (20 assists). Digs: Parsons 2, Fox 4, Charkawi 3, Baker 5, Hizer 2, Pierce 1.
Linsly d. Hundred 25-5, 25-22
Record: Paden City 2-0
Next match: St. John Central and Valley at Paden City tri, 5:30 p.m. today
A Watson kill block with Campbell at the service line helped the Tigers storm out 4-0 in set two. It was 8-1 after Ohrn and Summers registered a kill apiece. A Sarah West kill and solid all-around play from Grose kept St. Marys close as the Blue Devils trailed just 15-10 after a Grose ace. However, the closest the Blue Devils got the rest of the way was at 18-14 after a Katie Mixer ace and at 23-20 after a Tiger hitting miscue gave Glover a service tally.
Grose, who joined Glover with four kills, added five and a half kill blocks. However, the Tigers went up two sets to none when Bunch got a kill block on Grose for set point.
Consecutive points by Mykaela Handschumacher helped St. Marys, which plays host to Parkersburg Catholic this evening, take a quick 5-3 lead in set three. That didn't last long as consecutive aces by Ohrn put the Tigers ahead for good at 7-5. The Blue Devils were behind 9-6 after Tiger Makayla Bell served for an ace and trailed 17-11 following a Smith kill which gave Liz Adams a service tally. St. Marys closed it to four at 17-13 thanks to a pair of service tallies from Kelsey Kirkpatrick, but never got any closer.
