Girls volleyball: Wadsworth gets big win over defending Pennsylvania state champs

CHESTER TWP. — Elite volleyball programs will go to great lengths to face top competition, especially at this late stage of the season.That's why Wadsworth and Wexford North Allegheny (Pa.) traveled to Gilmour Academy for a neutral-site match Saturday.Outside hitter Lauren Decker fired eight of her match-high 12 kills in the second set and setter Rowan Kelly collected 20 assists, five kills and four blocks as the Grizzlies beat the Tigers 25-21, 25-12 in a best-of-three contest.Outside hitter Carena Schiller had five kills and middle hitter Paige Shanahan added four for North Allegheny, which is the eight-time defending Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class AAAA state champion."It was good volleyball," Wadsworth coach Allyson Wines said. "The pace of the game and the caliber of the kids North Allegheny has made it worth the trip."Gaining some experience and increasing your volleyball IQ at this stage of the season, that's how you prepare for the tournament."Sophomore Quinn Macko hammered six kills from the left outside and middle hitter Lilly McComas had four kills and a pair of aces for the Grizzlies (20-1), who extended their winning streak to 13.Ohio University recruit Kelly also paced the squad with seven digs and sophomore libero Ellie Wolf made five.While senior tri-captains Decker, Kelly and McComas dominated the second set, sophomore outside hitter Natalie Maddox was responsible for swinging momentum toward Wadsworth in the opener after North Allegheny went up 21-19 on a feed from future Duquesne setter Keely McMahon-Regan.Wines summoned Maddox from the bench in search of a spark, which she delivered. After the Grizzlies earned a sideout via an error, the varsity rookie served out the set with five points."We were missing too many serves, but Natalie came in and made the difference in the match," Robert Morris recruit Decker said. "That's one of the best things about our team. One person gets us going and everyone rallies around it."In addition to playing the same position, Maddox and Decker are teammates on Wadsworth's perennially powerful basketball team."Lauren is so kind and hard working in both sports and such a wonderful person," Maddox said. "She's taught me not to worry about making a mistake because there is always a next ball. It's made me more comfortable being on the court."The Grizzlies closed the contest by scoring 31 of the final 43 points, taking full advantage of North Allegheny's fatigue in its fourth match of the day at the five-school Gilmour Invitational.McMahon-Regan finished with 10 assists and Penn State signee Molly Robertson had four helpers for the Tigers (9-3), who are a perfect 8-0 in Section 2-Class AAAA this fall. They essentially used different six-position lineups in each set.Four-time reigning Suburban League National Conference champion Wadsworth wraps up its pre-tournament schedule Tuesday in a showdown of state-ranked teams against Archbishop Hoban.One year after reaching the OHSAA Division II state semifinals, the Grizzlies are a win away from tying the Medina County regular season record of 21. They added the North Allegheny match in early September after Oregon Clay pulled out of its contracted visit to Wadsworth."I'm excited because this was a pretty good win," said Decker, whose 1,378 kills rank third all-time locally. "They gave us a good game and showed how important it is for everyone to be on the same page. It definitely helped us prepare for Hoban."In other matches:Brecksville QuadrangularBROADVIEW HTS. — Fewer than 48 hours after capturing its unprecedented seventh straight Suburban League American Conference championship, the Highland volleyball team played a tripleheader.Senior middle hitter Kamryn Heldreth hammered 31 kills, senior outside hitter Lily Vojtko had 13 and freshman outside hitter Samantha Ross added 11 as the Hornets went 2-1 at the Brecksville Quadrangular.Greater Cleveland Conference runner-up Strongsville swept all three of its best-of-three matches to claim first place at the event, while Cranberry North Catholic (Pa.) went 1-2. The host Bees failed to win a set.Highland (16-6) began the day by rallying for a 27-29, 25-16, 25-9 win over North Catholic, fueled by 11 kills from Heldreth, 18 assists and seven aces from setter Payton Hrics and 22 digs by libero Carley Niese.The Hornets' nine-match win streak was ended by the Mustangs, who scored the final four points in a 25-18, 26-24 triumph. Highland went up 24-22 when Vojtko blocked standout hitter Payton Beard, but setter Gianna Grecol and Beard would not be denied after that.Heldreth put down 11 more spikes and Alyssa Koehler, Alaina Weingart and Niese each had seven digs against Strongsville.Hrics dialed in 16 assists and Emma Tramonte had seven in the finale, an easy 25-14, 25-8 victory over Brecksville. Ross and Vojtko had five kills apiece in support of Heldreth's nine kills and three aces.The Hornets, who have won 10 of their last 11 overall, begin their quest for a second straight regional berth in Division III by hosting Barberton on Thursday.Contact Brian Dulik at sports@medina-gazette.com. Follow him @BrianDulik on X.