Royals Sweep Dundee in LCAA Opener

The Blissfield varsity volleyball team was impressive in their LCAA-opening win over Dundee at home Thursday night. The Royals were dominant at times in a 25-15, 25-16, 25-21 victory.

“This was much better,” said coach Sandi Porter, who thought her team lacked energy and consistency in previous outings. “I really liked the way we hit the ball today.”

In particular, she called out the work of middle hitters Celia Coopshaw and Zoe Brennan. She also said Ashley LaRoy and Laura Goetz did a nice job landing spikes.

“I thought we did a better job with serving and the serve receive today,” Porter said.

It didn’t take long for the Royals to establish themselves. They scored the game’s first point and never looked back in the opener. Game 1 was tied at three when senior Celia Coopshaw smashed a ball on to Dundee floor. The kill set up a six-point run that featured two kills by Laura Goetz and kills for Megan Knierim and Zoe Brennan. With the score 12-7, Taylor Jacob’s tip fooled the Vikings, leading to a five-point run which featured three straight kills by Ashley LaRoy. During one rally, Coopshaw delivered two big blocks before Jacob set up LaRoy for the kill.

Having one the first game so easily, Blissfield was a little sluggish in the second game. Errors and net violations plagued Blissfield as they fell behind 11-5. A Dundee error made it 11-6 and put the ball in the hands of server Knierim. She fired two aces as Blissfield as Blissfield caught fire, scoring 11-straight points. Zoe Brennan and LaRoy each landed two kills during the run. Blissfield finished the game with 9-5 run. Coopshaw ended it with a kill and a block.

The Royals didn’t open very well in the third game, falling back 6-1. After battling back to take an 8-7 lead, Dundee went on a 10-2 run to take an 18-10 lead, as the frustrated Royals were misfiring. The teams traded points with Dundee taking a 20-14 lead when the Royals woke up with a kill by Goetz. Coopshaw then had two straight kills, cutting Dundee’s lead to three. A kill by Goetz and two Dundee mistakes tied the score at 20. After a Blissfield serve went out of bounds, giving Dundee a one-point edge, Goetz fired off another kill. The rattled Vikings committed another error to give Blissfield the lead. Goetz ripped another kill and then Brennan’s block gave Blissfield a 24-21 lead. A Dundee misfire sealed the Blissfield victory.