Adena outlasts Unioto in five-set thriller, keeps unblemished record intact

Derrick Webb, Managing Editor

Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.

CHILLICOTHE — The standard is still the standard in Frankfort.

Adena, admittedly, lost four talented seniors to graduation after a Final 4 run last fall, the Warriors have not been forced to rebuild in the slightest.

They’ve simply reloaded.

Young players have stepped up, veterans have played as advertised and Hall of Fame coach Laura Smith is still calling the shots on the bench.

And while the Warriors (15-0, 8-0 SVC) were indeed tested on Thursday, in the end, they stayed perfect with a thrilling five-set win over rival Unioto — a 25-20, 22-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-10 final.

“Coming in, I told the girls that this place was going to be rocking. It was going to be noisy and loud,” Smith said. “It’s good for them to experience that. They were down [in the match]. We said a little prayer, Caroline [Glandon] led us, and asked for some help to be confident in what we were doing. We also got a little help from Unioto. They made some mistakes. But we had to attack the ball and just keep swinging. That’s what we kept telling them.”

The first set provided the common theme throughout the night … a back-and-forth affair.

Unioto took an early 4-3 lead with a block from Zoie Dettwiller before Adena went ahead at 9-8, thanks to a kill from Peytyn Lemaster. The two continued to trade leads until Burns finally put the Warriors ahead for good at 15-14.

An ace from Burns made it 18-15 before a kill from Jacey Jones pushed the lead to 22-17. That was enough momentum to put away a match-opening 25-20 victory.

In the second, Unioto (13-3, 6-2 SVC) provided a counter-punch and it was behind the play of Charlotte Dennis.

The Shermans took a lead at 7-6, thanks to a kill from Dennis, before the 6-foot-1 sophomore made it a 9-7 lead with a block. Freshman Kori Grubbs added a kill for a three-point lead and the Shermans kept rolling, polishing off a 6-0 run to take a 14-7 advantage midway through.

That seven-point lead would be intact at 17-10 and, although the Warriors began to claw back into the game late, it was a hole too deep to get out of. The Shermans put away a 25-22 victory to wipe the slate clean.

In the third, Adena took an early lead and held it at 13-8 following a kill from Burns. Allie Bossert would log back-to-back aces before Burns and Jacey Smith each found holes on the floor, making it 19-12.

But after a timeout, Unioto started to chip away at the deficit.

Following a kill from Lemaster that gave the Warriors a 21-14 advantage, the Shermans used attacks from Dennis and Kayla White, as well as an ace from Kinzli Batson, to rip off five straight points.

A kill from Grubbs eventually tied the score at 22-22, and Kiley Puckett gave Unioto a 23-22 lead with an ace. That all led to Unioto taking a 2-1 match lead with a 25-22 victory.

“We don’t have the hitters that Unioto does,” Smith said. “I told the kids at the beginning of the year that we have to keep the ball alive. We have to hang in long rallies until we get our moment. Sometimes, good things will happen, even with just that. There were a lot of long rallies tonight and, sometimes, the longer it goes, the better it is for us.”

Adena got off to a fast start in the fourth, racing out to a 7-2 lead. It ballooned to 16-10 before the Shermans battled back to make it a one-point game at 20-19.

But Adena’s Adyson Wisecup provided some room with a kill for a 21-19 lead before a block from Burns put the Warriors ahead 23-20. Burns logged another kill, making it 24-22, before Jones put a capper on a 25-23 win, forcing a fifth set.

In the race to 15 points, Burns forced Unioto into a timeout with a kill to put Adena up 6-3. The first-team All-Ohioan continued to be dominant down the stretch, logging an ace for a 10-6 lead.

While the Shermans went on a 4-0 run to tie the game at 10-10, Smith broke the tie for an 11-10 lead and Jones logged two kills to force a match point at 14-10. The Warriors would eventually stay perfect with a five-point win, following a Unioto hitting error.

“We got a little bit of a lead [in the fifth] and Katie came alive,” Smith said. “She really did. She came through and we really needed it. And, bless Jacey Jones’ heart. She’s just a sophomore but she’s had to step up and be a little bit bigger than that this year. And Peytyn is coming along. Her confidence is growing. This kind of match will help them all.”

Statistically, Burns finished with 22 kills alongside four aces, eight blocks and 15 digs. Jones finished with 12 kills, Lemaster had six, Smith posted a team-high 42 digs to go along with six kills, and Kimmy Dalton added 22 digs of her own. Kortney Sowers also helped out with 16 digs and 17 assists while Bossert posted 28 assists and 13 digs.

Dennis led the Shermans with 23 kills and five blocks, Dettwiller had 18 kills, five blocks and seven digs, and White helped out with six kills and six blocks. Batson also chipped in with 47 assists and 16 digs, and Alyssa Stanley finished with a match-high 48 digs.

While Unioto attempts to bounce back on Tuesday at Paint Valley, the Warriors will look to stay perfect the same evening with a home date against Zane Trace.

It’s one of six SVC matches left on Adena’s regular season schedule while a non-league meeting against Shekinah Christian awaits this coming Saturday.

“We play on these Saturdays, go up to Lehman Catholic and play three matches, and we went to Highland and played Buckeye Valley, who’s a really good team,” Smith said. “We did OK in those games. Our back row kept us alive. It helps a lot. I think they can play a little more relaxed when it’s not someone they know. We want to play tough competition out of the league. It’s tournament time where those games come into play because we’ve had that experience.”

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