EAST ARCADIA – Clarkton School of Discovery moved into sole possession of first place in the Bladen Five Middle School Volleyball Conference Tuesday with a 3-0 victory over Elizabethtown by set scores of 25-12, 25-15 and 25-8.
Elizabethtown scored the first point of the match, but Katie Evans capped a long volley with a deep return. The Lady Cougars answered with 3 straight points to take a 4-1 lead.
Khadijah Jones tallied a service point, then delivered a diving return winner for Clarkton. Alyssa Futrell fired in an ace during a run of 9 straight service points that vaulted the Lady Blue Devils in front 13-5.
Sara Gargala recorded a trio of service points that padded the lead to 17-8. After the Lady Cougars pulled to within 19-12, Lauren Bowen cracked a winning return, and AnnaGrey Heustess closed out the set with 5 consecutive service points.
Jones started the second set with a couple of service points that put the Lady Blue Devils up 4-1. Futrell drilled in an ace during a 7-point service run that featured return winners from Jones and Evans. A Gargala service point made it 14-5 CSD.
A service point from Tara Rogers and 2 more from Evans grew the lead to 19-8. Gargala’s return winner halted an Elizabethtown run, and Merritt Martin served out the set with a trio of service points.
The Lady Cougars jumped in front 5-0 in the third set before Bowen trimmed the margin to 5-3 with a pair of service points. Jones hammered in an ace and 5 more service points, and Futrell added a service point for an 11-7 Clarkton lead.
After the teams traded side-outs, Gargala reeled off 13 straight service points that included one ace to end the match. “Jones, Futrell and Heather Hardin had spectacular returns during that run,” said Clarkton Coach Chris Callihan.
The Lady Blue Devils improved to 3-0 with the victory, while Elizabethtown is now 1-1 and tied with Tar Heel for second place.
Bladenboro’s Lady Bulldogs captured their first win of the season with a 3-0 victory over East Arcadia in Tuesday’s second match. Bladenboro is now 1-2, while East Arcadia is now 0-2.
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