Rangers sweep Riders in Auglaize County matchup

ST. MARYS - Looking for revenge after a sweep in the Cavalier Spikeoff nine days earlier, St. Marys held its own against New Knoxville early on, but by the second set the Rangers found a groove.

The Roughriders took a 5-1 lead in the second set after a close loss in the first before the Midwest Athletic Conference champions got going, scoring 10 of the next 13 points to take control and dominating the third set for a 25-19, 25-15, 25-16 sweep at Grand Lake Health System Court on Tuesday.

"Felt early on we made a lot of our own errors," said New Knoxville coach Jenny Fledderjohann, at the helm in the absence of head coach Meg Lageman. "Kind of stayed in the game because they made some errors, and that helped us. As the match went on we got better and better each set."

After New Knoxville (5-1) closed out the first set with four straight points, a kill and a block by Carsyn Henschen followed by a pair of Roughrider errors, the Rangers committed three straight hitting errors to give St. Marys (2-4) an early lead in the second. It wasn't until Halle Huston broke the run with a serve into the net that the Rangers got a chance to breathe.

St. Marys still led 7-4 when the Rangers took off, scoring the next five points as three Roughrider hitting errors helped New Knoxville take the lead for good.

"Erica Weadock gave us a really good spark in the second game," Fledderjohann said. "She made some really good defensive plays that converted us to offense, and we got some good swings out of that."

The teams traded the next several points before Avery Henschen went on a long service run, including an ace, to give the Rangers a 21-14 lead. St. Marys could muster only one more point before New Knoxville closed out the set.

Facing the prospect of a sweep, the Roughriders struggled early in the third, committing two hitting errors and a blocking error as the Rangers took a 5-0 lead. After a service error gave the ball back to St. Marys, Carsyn Henschen got a quick kill and New Knoxville got a six-point service run from Melisa Waterman to stretch the lead to 10.

"New Knoxville plays strong defense against us, and when that ball doesn't drop we just continue to get frustrated," St. Marys coach Caley Yoder said. "We've just got to take care of the ball. Hitting errors and serving errors are something we've just got to work on."

St. Marys got within six but no closer, with Weadock adding another six-point service run to put the set out of reach.

It was a stark contrast to the first set, when St. Marys recovered from a 7-4 deficit to take the lead. After a blocking error tied the game at 14, Carsyn Henschen went on a three-point service run to give New Knoxville a narrow advantage.

St. Marys kept the margin within three, getting as close as 21-19, before the Rangers pulled away.

"I think our hitters were taking it to the block, and our passers and our defense were stepping up," Yoder said. "We just have to have that longevity, play that way in the second and third set."

Carsyn Henschen finished with 17 kills and four blocks, with Avery Henschen chipping in eight kills and a pair of aces and Ellie Gabel adding 33 assists. Huston recorded four kills, a pair of blocks and an ace for St. Marys, while Lily Rammel finished with 11 assists.

Both teams open league play on Thursday, with St. Marys hosting Wapakoneta and New Knoxville traveling to Coldwater.