Charter powers past St. Mark’s in volleyball, 3-0

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Dialog reporter

 

WILMINGTON – Charter School of Wilmington has slid a bit under the radar this season on the scholastic volleyball scene, but the Force has quietly put together an outstanding first half of 2014. On Tuesday afternoon, Charter continued its dominant ways, sweeping St. Mark’s, 3-0, improving to 8-0 on the year while losing just one set. Set scores were 25-12, 25-21 and 25-19.

Charter’s roster is stocked with only juniors and seniors, and the experience was evident against the young Spartans. St. Mark’s put up a valiant fight against the Force’s twin towers, Olivia DiMaio and Liz Marcin, along with Kristen Edmiston. DiMaio is listed at 6 feet tall and Edmiston 6-2, while Marcin is 5-10 but plays taller. Charter also boasts a superior service game; they were credited with seven aces on Tuesday, and they added numerous service winners.

St. Mark's prepares for a kill attempt during Tuesday's match at Wilmington Charter. The Spartans fell, 3-0. (The Dialog/Mike Lang)
St. Mark’s prepares for a kill attempt during Tuesday’s match at Wilmington Charter. The Spartans fell, 3-0. (The Dialog/Mike Lang)

The Force set the tone early, jumping out to a 5-0 lead with Kelsey Mayhew delivering two aces and a service winner. St. Mark’s scored its first two points on Charter service errors and did not record an offensive point until Genevieve Hughes split the Force defenders with a tap that made it 11-3. St. Mark’s saw plenty of Charter’s twin towers up front – Olivia DiMaio and Liz Marcin – as the pair boomed kill after kill over the net.

The Spartans rebounded in game two, staying even with the Force. They bounced back from a 14-11 deficit, climbing to within one point on an ace by Amanda Gerhart and tying the score on a kill down the middle by Hughes. Charter then scored five of the next six points to extend the advantage to 20-15, the last two of those points coming on big kills by DiMaio. Facing set point, St. Mark’s Addison Reich kept the Spartans alive with a kill, then Kara Wirt delivered her lone ace of the afternoon, and it was 24-21. Charter won the set, however, on an unforced error to take a commanding 2-0 lead.

St. Mark’s was in game three most of the way, holding a two-point advantage as late as 12-10. Back-to-back kills by Marcin tied the set, but the Spartans held for a bit longer, as a Jenna Tomovich kill knotted the score at 14. Charter took over with a few mini-runs, including one of four points that ended the match. Fittingly, the final points came on a kill by Marcin, an ace by DiMaio and a tip kill by Edmiston.

DiMaio led the way with 12 kills; Marcin and Edmiston added eight each. The Force are home on Wednesday against Delcastle at 5 p.m.

St. Mark’s (4-3) received seven kills and 11 digs from Hughes. Grace Sawyer also had 11 digs, while Reich served up three aces. The Spartans travel to Maryland to meet the Fallston School on Thursday at 5 p.m.