The Middlesex varsity volleyball team hosted class-A opponent Dana Hall School on Wednesday, October 16 after much of the team had completed the PSAT exam, and, after a sluggish start in the first set, came alive with strong, cohesive play from the whole team to defeat the Dragons 3-2 for their sixth consecutive victory.
The first set started slow for Middlesex, as the Dragons earned the first sideout on an unforced error by the Zebras and then put together a long service run to take an early lead. Middlesex finally earned the sideout on a great pass by captain and outside hitter Mayu Lee '20 to setter Sophia Poplyk '21, who set up a kill by opposite Natalie McCall '21. Outside hitter Katy Qin '21 was next to serve for Middlesex, and her tough serve made it hard for the Dragons to put together a powerful hit, and Middlesex capitalized-- Natalie sent a dig to Poplyk, who varied the offense with a kill by middle Morgan Clapp '22. But despite continued strong work on defense, the Zebras allowed several more runs by the Dragons, who should be commended for their tough, consistent serves, and the first set ended 14-25, Dana Hall.
The Zebras fell behind early in the second set, too, and then struggled through the middle of the set to close the gap, finding themselves in a 8-16 deficit. However, a service run by libero Sevilla Jin '21, which included two aces, kept the Zebras close, and a solid dig by defensive specialist Emily Pyne '21 allowed Poplyk to set up another kill by Natalie. After Sevilla's serve, the Zebras came right back to earn the immediate sideout on a big double block by captain and middle Kiley Briand '20 and Natalie. The scoreline then stayed fairly even until the end of the set, when, with the score at 22-23, Mayu stepped back to serve. She aced her first two serves, and, with the score now at 24-23, Dana Hall called a timeout to regroup. Mayu stayed composed, however, and calmly produced another tough serve, resulting in Dana Hall scrambling to setup the attack with the hit just going long, and the set ended 25-23, Middlesex.
With the momentum now on the side of the Zebras, Dana Hall made some defensive changes to solidify their back row. Middlesex jumped to an early lead after an impressive 10-point service run by Sevilla, which included some long rallies and great work at the net by the Middlesex blockers, and two more kills notched by Natalie. Later in the set, a big sideout for the Zebras came on a good receive by defensive specialist Sofia Dickinson '22, which allowed Poplyk to set up a kill by Morgan. Poplyk then rotated back to serve, and immediately dished up two aces. On the next rally, Morgan and Natalie's big double block stuffed the Dragons' top hitter, Alexa Orent, and then, after another big swing by the same hitter, Sevilla was there for a dig, one of her fifteen digs on the day, right to Poplyk, who set up another kill by Katy. Middlesex lost the serve with the score at set point as Orent found her way through the Middlesex defense for a big kill, and the third set then ended 25-12, Middlesex, on a kill by Morgan (who had 10 kills on the day) assisted by Poplyk after a great pass by Natalie.
The fourth set stayed even through the middle, but a couple of three- and four-point service runs allowed Dana Hall to put together a sizeable lead-- again, the consistent serves by their whole squad proved to be a major asset. A late service run by Natalie, which included back-to-back kills by Kiley, narrowed the gap, but the fourth set eventually ended 20-25, Dana Hall, forcing the fifth and deciding set.
As news of the tight match spread and as other games ended, the bleachers began to fill and the gym started to get noisy. Dana Hall won the coin toss and elected to serve first in the fifth set, but Middlesex earned the sideout right away, as Morgan came up strong in the middle, blocking an overpassed dig of her own hit. Poplyk (who had nine total aces in the match) then aced three consecutive serves to put Middlesex up 4-0; an unforced error by the Dragons was then followed by a long rally, which ended with a dig by Mayu to Poplyk for another kill by Natalie (who ended the match with seven kills and five blocks), putting the Zebras up 6-0. Dana Hall then called a timeout to regroup, and earned the sideout. Dana Hall's stroug serves and some big swings by Orent (21 kills in the match) narrowed the gap and the score was tied at 11-11. With the score at 14-12, Middlesex, Dana Hall stayed composed and capitalized on unforced errors by the Zebras to tie the score again, 14-14. Another match point for Middlesex at 15-14 was sided out by Dana Hall, who then earned match point 15-16 through an ace. A vital sideout by Middlesex tied the score again at 16-16, and Katy stepped back to serve. Her tough serve forced an error by the Dragons to put the score again at match point for the Zebras. Katy's next serve was overpassed, and Mayu was right there for the stuff block, her seventh kill of the day, to end the match 18-16, Middlesex, with the loud cheers of the celebrating raucous home crowd filling the gym.
Both teams should be commended for strong, cohesive play producing remarkable rallies and high quality volleyball in this match. Middlesex (8-1 overall, 5-1 ISL) now look ahead to Saturday, October 19, when they will travel to Dedham, Mass. for a 2pm contest against defending ISL champions Noble and Greenough.
Match highlights video link: http://www.hudl.com/video/2/198580/5da7dfe06655961150811881
