By RYAN WALKER
The Bluffton (8-17) volleyball team ended its season on a 3-0 sweep at the hands of Bishop Luers (9-18) Thursday night in the first round of the sectional at South Adams High School.
On paper, the game looked as if it was going to be an all-out battle, with just one game separating the two schools by record.
Technically, it did in the first set. Both teams didn’t hold the lead over three points and traded those leads often.
At the end of the first set, Bluffton’s head coach Stacy Morrison used her first timeout as they were down 24-22. It would provide the Tigers with the next point, but Bishop Luers snagged the final one to take a 1-0 lead.
Despite the records and the even-steven first round, that quickly changed in favor of the Knights in the second set.
A dominant performance from Bishop Luers put them in the driver’s seat, leading by as many as 11 points in the period. Bluffton was a completely different group in that stretch.
“We struggled a little bit with our passing in that second set,” Morrison admitted. “They (Bishop Luers) played a nice offense. They were attacking well, they were being aggressive, and we played slow tonight. I think they were more aggressive that second set, and we paid for it.”
Perhaps part of the struggles in the second set was attributed to the previous match. South Adams and Adams Central finished its game at 8:20 p.m., forcing a late 9 p.m. start for Bluffton and Bishop Luers. Morrison believes that it could have been part of the answer but isn’t using it as an excuse.
“I don’t know if that played into it,” Morrison said. “That doesn’t really matter because it’s a sectional game. You have to be ready at any time.”
With the season on the line and the seniors down to what could be their last go-around, the Tigers fell in a 3-0 hole to begin the third. But a surge of energy later had them scratching away for points, poking the Knights around and notching the score at 12-12.
Over the next few points, Bluffton continued to take a slight lead, with Luers crawling right back. Eventually, the Knights took a 22-19 lead that called for a Tiger timeout. By then, it was too late, as Luers went on a 3-1 run to end the set 3-0 despite the comeback effort.
“We didn’t play our game tonight,” Morrison said. “We missed quite a few serves, and usually, we’re a strong serving team. We usually serve well, consistently, and we missed quite a few, which threw the game off.”
With every season, there must be a last game for the seniors. This year, Morrison will miss her group of four, Riley Couch, Emma Baumgartner, Savanna Jessup, and Lauren Reiff, which all come with their own unique style.
“There’s four very different seniors that play very different aspects of the game,” she said with a smile. “Each and every one is very valuable, and they’re good people on and off the court. They’re good role models, and we’ll miss each one for different reasons.”
sports@news-banner.com
