Rustin runs into a buzz-saw; Unionville off to best start in five years
EAST MARLBOROUGH – Nobody was more surprised at the seeming ease with which the Unionville volleyball squad quickly dispatched visiting West Chester Rustin on Thursday than Indians’ head coach Stephanie Smith.
“I am a little surprised,” she said. “Rustin is a very strong program.
“I had every expectation we’d be going five (sets) tonight, so I am super happy.”
Instead, Unionville solidified its spot atop the Ches-Mont American standings with a 25-17, 25-14, 25-22 triumph that was over in about an hour. The Indians grabbed the momentum early and never really lost it.
“(Unionville) had all of the momentum. We ran into a buzz-saw,” said Golden Knights’ head coach Harry Bitzberger. “They were ready go, they have a great team, and they brought the house.
“I’ve coached about eight of their kids in either CYO or club volleyball. They are great kids, they work hard, they love the game, and they are well coached.”
The Indians improve to 6-0 in the league and 8-1 overall.
“We haven’t had a great start to a season like this since 2014, when we last won the (Ches-Mont American) division,” said Smith, who is in her second year as the varsity mentor.
Coming off a three-set home setback to powerhouse Bishop Shanahan two days earlier, Rustin falls to 3-2 in the league (4-2 overall).
“I didn’t think (Unionville) could maintain that momentum throughout,” Bitzberger said. “Some of our kids didn’t get the chance to show what they are capable of doing, and maybe the reason was that Unionville wouldn’t let us.
“Sometimes a kick in the butt is good for a team,” he added.
The Indians took control in the opening set when junior setter Ashlyn Wiswell served for seven straight points, which included three service aces and three kills by junior hitter Sophie Brenner.
The pivotal set, however, was the second. The Knights raced ahead 7-1 only to see Unionville storm back with a 13-3 surge to take the lead for good. Freshman Maddy Lowe then served it out with five straight points, including two kills by Brenner and another by Kat Tuerff.
“We calmed each other down and knew in our minds that we were going to come back and trust our teammates,” said Brenner, who finished with a game-high 20 kills.
“We have to be able to comeback,” Smith added. “That’s what volleyball is all about, being able to change gears and grab back the momentum. I am always nervous about whether I should taking a time out, but I’m like, ‘no, they have this.’ They are able to do it one their own.”
Once again, Rustin started the third set strong and faded. Multiple late kills by Brenner, Tuerff and Lowe enabled the Indians to stay in front and close it out.
“We weren’t passing well on serve-receive. (Unionville) had a couple servers come in and eliminate leads,” Bitzberger said. “We just forgot how to pass for a bit. If you can’t serve and pass in this game, you can’t win. They did that much better than we did.”
Wiswall finished with 30 assists, Tuerff had seven kills and Emily Harper chipped in a team-high six blocks for Unionville. But afterwards, Bitzberger admitted that Brenner was the Indians’ most effective weapon.
“Sophie is one of the best players in this area, period,” he said.
“She always pulls out the big (stats) and she is one of our energy-sources on the team as well,” Smith added.
The highly-anticipated clash between Unionville and Bishop Shanahan is still 19 days away, but right now it looks like a two-team race for the Ches-Mont, a title that the Indians haven’t won since 2010.
“We are very aware of it,” Brenner said. “I think the main thing is a chemistry of our lineup. Everyone is just so close that when we get on the court, we know how to motivate each other. We also have a balanced team and it all works together nicely.”
