Brock Netter, Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by Holzer Health System.
CHILLICOTHE — Nothing was going to deter Miami Trace’s focus on Tuesday night.
Not fire alarms, not strobe lights, nor service errors.
The Panthers blocked out all distractions and overcame their own early mistakes, earning a four-set victory over Chillicothe by a 22-25, 28-26, 25-19 and 25-22 before they clinched a share of the FAC championship.
“Both of these teams bring out the best in one another, and this was another great chapter in this rivalry,” Miami Trace coach Doug Mace said. “They got us at our place and it definitely stung a little bit. The girls took that personally, which I was happy to see. They played with such heart and passion tonight, and what a win for our seniors.”
The win created a first-place tie atop the FAC standings with both teams sitting at 8-1 in conference play. Both teams then won on Thursday to clinch a share of the league title.
“This game has been really big every single year, and it only became even bigger for us seniors,” Miami Trace’s Lauren Guess said. “We didn’t want to have our heads down after they beat us the first time. We came in ready to shake some things up.”
Early on, Miami Trace (14-6, 9-1 FAC) couldn’t get out of its own way. It committed five service errors, all happening at the most inopportune times, forcing the Panthers to play from behind throughout the first set.
Meanwhile, Chillicothe’s Evelyn Hamman, Kendal Stoneking, Marisa Stitler and Sydnee Wade all posted kills to put the Cavaliers (14-5, 9-1 FAC) on top, and keep them ahead.
Hamman, Wade and Stitler each served an ace as well before a block from Hamman closed out the set.
“It took us a little bit to adjust, and I think part of that is because their gym is smaller than ours, so you have to adjust how hard you hit the ball,” Miami Trace’s Kylie Yeazel said. “It messes with you a little and you start to take a little bit off of the ball, so we had to figure it out.”
With the early nerves and jitters out of the way, Miami Trace went on the attack and opened a 6-1 lead after kills from Lauren Guess and Ella Butts, alongside an ace from Kaylin Stonerock.
Chillicothe fought back behind an avalanche of kills from Kendal Stoneking and a pair of aces from Josie Huddleston, closing the gap to 16-14.
The Cavaliers later tied the set at 17, 18, 22 and 24, before Huddleston’s third ace of the game gave them a 25-24 lead.
However, Miami Trace turned to Guess and she did what she does best.
The senior powered down kills to tie the game at 25 and 26 before ripping back-to-back shots to the floor to give the second set victory to the Panthers.
“We talked a lot in the huddle about defense, trusting one another and putting the ball up,” Guess said. “Up front, it was all about staying aggressive and getting blocks. Everything really started to come together and we kept that momentum.”
It was clear how important the third set was going to be, and both teams came ready for an all-out battle.
The Cavs got the early upper hand with four kills from Hamman, and a fourth ace from Huddleston, to take an early 6-4 lead.
Miami Trace later tied the set at 8-8, and the war officially began.
Points were traded and the two played to deadlocks at 8, 14, and 17. However, the Panthers were about to hit a different gear.
Behind kills from Stonerock, Butts and Alison Carter, they went on a 5-0 run to take a 22-17 lead before closing out the win.
“Our communication was really good. We do a really good job of picking each other up and moving on to the next play,” Carter said. “We fix problems really quickly, which definitely helped us get our serves in after some errors in the first set and hit our spots the way we needed to.”
Guess opened the fourth with a pair of kills before an ace from Carter capped a 5-0 start. Chillicothe answered with a 5-0 run of its own, before eventually taking a 7-6 after an ace from Wade.
The Cavs maintained a lead behind Hamman and Stitler at the net until an ace from Kylie Yeazel put the Panthers in front at 16-15.
A kill and an ace from Guess, followed by an ace from Keionnie Ackley and a kill from Stonerock, extended the lead to 21-17.
Despite Chillicothe battling back to cut the deficit to 22-21, the Panthers wouldn’t be denied. Stonerock answered with a pair of kills before her and Guess combined for a block to seal the victory.
“It’s a huge week for us, and this is definitely the highlight of the week,” Yeazel said. “We all have friends who play for Chillicothe and know each other so well after playing against one another over the last four years. It’s also nice knowing that we at least won a share of the conference all four years of high school.”
Miami Trace returns to action on Monday at home against Logan Elm, while Chillicothe welcomes Waverly to town that same evening.
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