The Lakeland volleyball team played host to the OCCAC rival Terra State Titans today and came away with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-12, 25-23) victory to sweep the season series. In game one, it was back-and-forth early with the visitors taking an 8-6 lead. After a sideout, Samantha Winter served an ace to knot the score at 8.  Later in the set, Alyssa Lino and Abby Karasek would each hit two kills to give the Lakers a 15-12 lead. The teams would trade points before Taylor Williams-Stevens and Isabella Schulz each hit a kill for an 18-13 Laker lead. Lakeland would then make a couple of errors - and combine that with a couple of Terra State kills -  and suddenly the score was tied 20-20. The Lakers called a timeout. Out of the timeout, Williams-Stevens crushed a ball to put the Lakers up 21-20. On the next rally, Alyssa Lino had a big block before Sydney Park hit a winner on a tip for a 22-20 lead. Taylor Williams-Stevens followed with an ace for a 23-20 advantage. On the following serve, the Titans were again put on the defensive and committed an error for a 24-20 lead. The following play saw Sydney Park again tip for a kill to give the Lakers set 1.

In set 2, the Lakers strong net play, defense, and passing allowed them to jump out to an early 8-4 lead. Lakeland then went on a role and dominated the Titans with their effort and play. In a very short period of time, the Lakers had built a 19-6 lead. After the Titans scored 2 points, Isabella Schulz righted the ship with hot kill. Mikayla Polefko then hit 2 kills before Taylor Williams-Stevens finished the set with another kill.

In set 3, the Titans jumped out to an early 10-6 lead. Williams-Stevens then hit a kill before Gianna Biondolillo served an ace to make the score 10-8. Following a Titan error, Williams-Stevens hit another kill to knot the score at 10. Isabella Schulz then hit a lazer to give the Lakers their first lead of the set at 11-10. The Titans would side out before Biondolillo hit a kill to regain the Laker lead. The teams traded points until the Lakers made a couple of errors as the Titans built a 23-19 lead. The teams would then have a longer rally where the Lakers played solid defense before forcing Terra State to hit long. Trailing 23-20, Taylor Williams-Stevens stepped to the service line and hit 5 consecutive aces to serve the Lakers the victory.  

Taylor Williams-Stevens led the team with 8 kills and 6 aces. Alyssa Lino finished with 6 kills while Sydney Park picked up 5 kills. Zoe Babnik recorded 20 digs while Isabella Schulz added 15 digs and several kills. Gianna Biondolillo added 11 digs while Samantha Winter finished with 12 assists and 4 digs. Abby Karasek had a kill and 4 digs while Mikayla Polefko chipped in with 2 kills and a pair of digs. Ashlen Horowski added 4 digs in the Lakers win.

Coach Watts' Word: "It was a good effort by the team. We had good positive energy today.  Everyone got to play and everyone was able to contribute. We had a few moments where we made some errors, but collectively they were able to regroup and take care of business. I'm proud of the growth they have shown. We have a good challenge coming up next week - we will prepare and we look forward to that opportunity."

Next Up: The Lakers will play host to the Golden Eagles of Kent State Tuscarawas on Tuesday (10/16). The match is scheduled to begin at 6:00 pm.