The Middlesex Girls' Varsity Volleyball team began their 2016 campaign at home in the Cage with a win as the team defeated Pingree, taking three decisive sets, 25-12, 25-10, and 25-12. The Zebras varied their offense, mixing up their hits and plays to keep their opponents guessing. Highlights in the first set included consistently strong serves by the whole team, with aces by setter Leyla Hotamisligil '18, co-captain and outside hitter Lily Renneker '17, libero Nina Huttemann '18, and middle Mimi Larrieux '18. A kill off of Leyla's assist and Nina's dig and then a series of big blocks by co-captain and middle blocker Lydia Paddock '17 extended the MX lead, and then an ace by Nina ended the set 25-12.
In the second set, a couple of errors by Middlesex allowed Pingree to get on the board first, but the momentum swiftly shifted back in favor of the Zebras, with a big kill by outside hitter Avery Light '18 off of Nina's dig to Leyla, followed by an aced serve by Lydia. A great dig by Nina to setter Defne Colak '18 set up a kill by opposite hitter Hadley Jevon '19 down the line. The offensive highlight of the set was the series of quicks by Mimi assisted by Defne, which caught Pingree's defense off guard. Nina's strong serve extended the Middlesex lead, and a big cross-court kill by Lily assisted by Defne off Avery's dig finished the set 25-10.
The team stepped onto the court in the third set determined to take control of the set from the start, and they got on the board immediately by siding out Pingree and then extending the lead with a series of aces and unreturnable serves by Leyla. Defensive specialist Stephanie Li '17 stepped in and dug up some well-placed shots to set up the Middlesex offense. Defensive specialist Erin Brady '17 also stepped in, helping to set up a rally that ended with a kill by Lily. More tough serves by the whole squad, including aces by Nina, Defne, Avery, and Lily, extended the lead, and Lydia's big block in the middle ended the set at 25-10.
The Zebras look forward to hosting Rivers on Saturday, September 17 at 2:00 PM in the Atkins Gymnasium.
