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WATERFORD-- The host Wildcats weren't about to be swept a second time this season by the visiting Eastern Eagles Monday evening at the Cooper Annex.
Eastern wasn't about to let them return the favor easily either, though that is what happened following a hard fought three sets.
Waterford cruised to an opening set victory, but then scratched and clawed for the sweep in the second and third sets for a 25-16, 25-21 and 25-24 victory.
"Very proud, they came out on fire. This is a team that I've been waiting to see all year, it kind of took us a little bit of time to get there. But I feel like we are clicking and everybody's stepping up their game," Waterford coach Kim Barker said. "The last time we saw Eastern, it was reverse roles, we didn't play well. We lost it in three and Eastern was on. You got to show up and play your game, and tonight we were the team that did that."
Riley Schwikert finished the game with seven kills, digs and one ace. Along with Schwikert, Waterford got it done upfront in the net, with Lily Roberts having a team-high 10 kills, five blocks and Kaylea Harmon having seven also. Giving them her teammates playable sets all night, Cara Taylor had a team-high 23 assists and continued to keep plays alive, earning 17 digs.
Libero Alayna Jones (16) and Jazmine Farmer (10) did the part for the cause, also earning double-figure digs.
"They did a very nice job. My hitters, I asked them to hit the holes, and they did that for me very well," Barker said. "Kara, she just does it all. I mean, she's just kind of the one that is the glue to the team and holds it together. But overall, everybody did a wonderful job tonight. So very proud of them."
Trading for the lead majority of the first set, with the biggest lead coming from Waterford staring the set on a 4-0 run.
Tied at 16-16, Roberts and Mackenzie Suprano's soft touches at got Waterford points.
The Wildcats went on a 9-0 run, that not even an Eastern time out with the score at 21-16 slowed them down.
Flipping sides, the two teams did a repeat of the first. Both keeping it close, the Wildcats looked like they were finally going to pull away from the Eagles to win the second set handily at 22-15.
Eastern then went on to score five straight points from Newland and Tessa Rockhold making it 22-20, before coach Barker called a time-out to settle things down. The timeout proved to work, with the Eagles only scoring one more point. As the Wildcats ended the second set on 3-1 run.
"Tonight was our camper night. So we had little kids come in from our summer camp. So we were just really happy to see them there," Barker said. "I think the girls were excited and it's just fun to be able to compete for your community and feel that support. So it's great."
You can contact Tyler Bennett at tbennett@newsandsentinel.com