For The Dialog
MILLTOWN – St. Mark’s, the sixth-ranked volleyball team in the state, is in a tough stretch of its schedule, but the Spartans swept No. 8 Red Lion on Oct. 17. The Spartans won by scores of 25-12, 25-16 and 25-18. Junior Erin Derick had 14 kills, eight digs and 10 assists to pace the Spartans.
The Lions were hanging with St. Mark’s in the first set, trailing 10-7, before the Spartans closed it out with a 15-5 run. Genevieve Hughes and Derick each had two kills in that span, although the set ended with a Red Lion service error.
The Spartans jumped out to a quick 9-3 lead in the second set, thanks to another Derick kills and more Lions unforced errors. Sara Desmond served up an ace to make the score 18-6, although Red Lion fought back behind kills by Mollie Betters. Another error ended the set and gave the hosts a 2-0 advantage.
It was more of the same in the final set, as the Spartans opened with a n 8-1 run, fueled by two kills from freshman Savannah Seemans. Betters led the Lions’ comeback, cutting the lead to 21-15 late. But freshman Abigail Thibodeau ended the contest with a great kill.
The Spartans (7-4) rebounded nicely from a loss to fifth-ranked Wilmington Charter last week, and they travel to another quality opponent, St. Georges, on Wednesday at 6:15 p.m. Red Lion fell to 9-2 and hosts St. Andrews on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
