On Saturday, November 19, ISL co-champion #2 Middlesex hosted EIL co-champion #3 Newton Country Day for the semifinal match of the NEPSAC Class B tournament. Many Middlesex students and faculty members delayed their departure for Thanksgiving break to support their team, and the Cage was energized for this competitive battle between two talented teams. After three hard-fought sets with long and intense rallies, Middlesex came out on top, 3-0.
In the first set, Newton scored first on a couple of back-to-back kills by their powerful outside, but then a great pass by defensive specialist Stephanie Li '17 to setter Defne Colak '18 allowed the Middlesex outside hitter and co-captain, Lily Renneker '17, to answer with a big kill of her own down the line for the sideout. Both teams made adjustments, and the scoreline stayed even throughout the set: libero Nina Huttemann '18 began to read the Newton hitters and dug up almost everything that came her way so that Defne and the front row hitters could convert the back row's defense into kills. The height advantage in the front row forced the Falcons to attempt more off-speed hits to get around the Zebras' block, which made it easier for the Middlesex defense to convert their hits into quality offense. An early service run by outside hitter Hadley Jevon '19 allowed Middlesex to even the scoreline and pull into a moderate lead, giving some extra confidence to the whole squad. After staying even through the end of the set, a final service run by Lily allowed Middlesex to pull ahead again, and a great dig by Nina allowed outside hitter Avery Light '18 to send a crushing kill cross court to put Middlesex at set point, and then a final pass by Nina to Defne set up the winning kill by Avery to end the first set 25-21.
Middlesex stepped into an early lead in the second set off of quality offense by the whole squad, but a series of errors in the middle of the set-- a couple of missed hits and missed serves-- allowed Newton to pull ahead and then to extend their lead. A service run by Stephanie, which included two aces, closed the gap, and a great pass by Nina allowed Defne to set up a slide to middle hitter Mimi Larrieux '18 who crushed it from the right side and forced an error by Newton. Still, even after this run, the Zebras still found themselves with a 5 point deficit at 16-21. After finally earning a sideout, Mimi stepped back to serve, and her consistent serve allowed for another great run, this time with seven consecutive kills by a single player, middle hitter and co-captain Lydia Paddock '17, who varied her placement, crushing the ball to the deep corners before going off-speed to catch the Newton defense off balance. The second set ended with an error by Newton, 25-23, Middlesex.
The third set was again competitive, with Middlesex eager to lock up the win, and Newton anxious to extend the match. Avery stepped up offensively in the third set, notching four kills for some decisive sideouts. Nina's tricky jump float caught Newton off guard in the final third of the set, as she earned a pair of aces to start her run. A great dig by Lily to Defne set up a kill by opposite hitter Natalie Burden '18, forcing Newton to call a timeout. Later in the set, the Zebras came up big at the net, blocking Newton's strongest hitters and forcing them to adjust to avoid the block. Mimi and Defne ran another slide to put the score at 22-19. The two teams traded errors, and a well-placed setter dump by Defne put Middlesex at match point, and then the match ended when Avery sent a perfect dig to Defne who set up the final, crushing kill by Lily to end the third set 25-23.
With this win, Middlesex (20-3) advances to the finals of the NEPSAC tournament, and will face the defending New England Class-B champions, #4 seed Pomfret Academy (16-3), on Sunday, November 20th at 12:00pm at Wilbraham and Monson Academy.
