The Middlesex Varsity Volleyball team secured their first win of the season over Brooks at home on Saturday, October 7, winning 3-1.
Middlesex got off to a quick start in Set 1, with Jackie Brown '25 getting the Zebras on the board with a back row attack, 1-0. Charlotte Heafey '25 kept the early lead with a fine outside hit, which was started by a nice pass from libero Elizabeth Welles '27, and setter Clair ("CJ") '25 Jennings getting the assist, 2-1. Senior co-captain Devon Coyle '24 got in on the action with a middle attack, keeping the Zebras ahead, 3-2. Devon continued her middle contribution with two blocks, expanding the Zebra lead to 7-4. Alyssa Aslam '25 kept up the strong middle attack, with her first kill of the game, 8-4. Jackie got her first front row kill of the match, 10-8. CJ added a service ace, and Alyssa had a middle tip for a point, extending the lead to 13-9. The Zebras continued their strong serving with Elizabeth and Charlotte notching aces of their own, taking the score to 18-15. Jackie's front row kill off a great pass from Clara Szeman '27 put the Zebras ahead 20-16. After both teams traded multiple sideouts, Charlotte secured the Set 1 win with an outside attack, 25-20.
Set 2 began another quick Zebra start, with Jackie's service ace, and back row attack, taking the early lead, 3-2. Jane ("Janie") Martin '26 got in on the action with a block, extending the lead, 4-2. Elizabeth's service ace took the score to 5-2. Brooks went on a service run to even the score, until the very scrappy Zebra defense ended the rally, retaking the lead, 8-7. Clara continued her strong contribution from the service line, scoring two consecutive aces, rebuilding the lead to 10-7. After traded sideouts, Charlotte picked right up at the service line, notching three consecutive aces of her own, extending the Middlesex lead to 14-8. Jackie kept the Zebras ahead with two front row kills that were initiated from fantastic back row passes by Clara and Elizabeth, keeping the positive momentum, and the Zebras ahead 16-13. Middlesex's tough serving continued with CJ's ace, and Elizabeth's tough serves to keep Brooks out-of-system, and the lead was extended to 20-15. Charlotte sandwiched a kill around another Clara service ace, two more front row attacks, and closed out Set 2 with a service ace, with the Zebras winning 25-20.
Brooks came out strong in Set 3, determined to disrupt the Zebra momentum. The teams traded side outs in the beginning portion of the Set, with Alyssa getting a roof block, Clara scoring 2 more service aces, and Charlotte scoring three kills. Brooks was the first team to 10, leading 9-10 early in the set. CJ kept things close with 2 additional service aces, and Charlotte getting another kill off great backrow play from Elizabeth and Clara, to trim the Brooks lead to 14-17. Jackie's service ace and back row kill, followed by another fine shot down the line from Charlotte kept the set close, 18-19. Devon's middle kill and aggressive serving tied the score at 22-22. After both teams sided out, Brooks notched their first set victory of the day, securing the 23-25 in Set 3.
Determined to regain the momentum, the Zebras came out strong in Set 4, with Jackie notching three consecutive aces, putting Middlesex in the early lead, 3-0. Elizabeth had a fine back row kill to keep the Zebras ahead, 4-2. The entire team showed grit on a long rally, scrambling on defense to extend the lead to 8-5. Devon's middle tip put Middlesex up, 10-7. Another middle block from Alyssa, a service ace from CJ, and Janie's right-side kill extended the lead to 14-10. CJ continued to make smart distribution decisions, facilitated by great backrow passing from both Clara and Elizabeth, resulting in Charlotte notching three kills, keeping the Zebras ahead, 17-15. Devon's middle attack kept the pressure on Brooks, taking the score to 20-16. Alyssa had another middle kill off a smart set from CJ, and Jackie's winner off a nicely placed third ball put the Zebras on the cusp of the win, 24-16. It was fitting that CJ scored the final point with another smart choice – dumping the ball over the net with a surprise attack, with the Zebras winning the set 25-17, and the match, 3-1.
Talia De Leon '24 earned the team helmet for the match for her great overall support of the team and positive & encouraging attitude. The team continues its ISL schedule on the road next week with matches at the Governor's Academy on Wednesday, October 11, at 3:00pm and at the Groton School on Friday, October 13, at 2:00pm.
