Blair dominates the volleyball court

Oct. 20, NELSON H. KOBREN MEMORIAL GYMANISUM—

Blair girls' varsity volleyball served their way to another win tonight against the Kennedy Cavaliers in a three set win. The Blazers serving and saving were consistent against a tireless Kennedy team. Blair fell short of their expectations however; winning by smaller margins than they hoped, 25-17, 25-18, and 26-24. Blair sprinted ahead of Kennedy during the beginning of every set because of accurate serving, but had to work hard to keep ahead of the Cavaliers and secure a win.

Blair started out strong the first set, dominating the court with their serves. Sophomore Julie Zhu sent six serves flying over the net, giving Blair a 7-0 lead in just the first few minutes. Junior Alice Fan barely gave Kennedy any time to recover. Fan served an incredible seven serves over the net, extending Blair's lead to 14-3, before serving into the net. The set began to go downhill from this point. Blair's passing started to fall apart and the Blazers returned fewer of the Cavaliers serves. The Blazers were also making mistakes that continued to diminish their lead. Senior Tiffany Yee continuously tried to play serves that were out of bounds, costing Blair several points. "We gave them too many points than we should have because of stupid mistakes," said junior Bao Nguyen. Blair pulled out in the end and won the set 25-17.

Blair quickly pulled ahead of the Cavaliers during the opening of the second set. At first tied 1-1, junior Katarina Farah slammed three on-point serves over the net, giving Blair the advantage that would hold them over Kennedy for the rest of the set. Neither Blair nor Kennedy played very well for the rest of the second set, earning quick points with short volleys. The Blazers finally took charge at 11-8 when Zhu stepped up to serve. Zhu gave Blair not only two more points, but the confidence and momentum they needed to jumpstart their playing. Farah gave Blair another two points, and sophomore Julie Brice another three. The Blazers had a good lead of 20-12 and it looked like the game was going to end soon. Instead, the momentum slowed and Blair allowed Kennedy to earn four points without putting up a fight. "We were lacking communication," explained Nguyen. "We were too cluttered by the net and falling over each other," added sophomore Olivia Bozik. After a few tense moments the team came together and earned their second win, 25-18.

The Blazers were ahead early in the third set, winning 8-3 without any indication of slowing down. "We had our competitive spirit," said junior Sophia Smith. Fan's strong, accurate, and consistent serving widened the Blazers' lead by another seven points to 15-3. After Fan's serving streak, the Cavaliers slowly started taking over until the Blazers' lead was in danger. Blair started fighting back, diving across the court to return balls to surprised Cavaliers. "I tried to get everything and was just diving for everything," says Brice. Brice earned the Blazers two essential points with her saves, ensuring that the Blazers did not fall behind. Blair and Kennedy tied for the first time of the night at 23-23, and then at 24-24. Blair pulled ahead by gaining a point after four volleys back and forth and then on an ace by Brice, winning the set 26-24.

Bozik saw room for improvement in the Blazers' playing. "We need to work on talking," she explains. Fan added, that "today was good but I think the third game could have been better." In all three sets Blair dominated the first half with their accurate serving that led to their winning in the end. Blair's record now stands at 5-6-0.

Blair's next game is Oct.25 at 7 p.m. against Richard Montgomery.