Although standing only 5-foot-3, Roncalli freshman Emma Halter played like one of the biggest players on the floor Thursday night at Columbus North. The defensive specialist was all over floor, digging up most of what North had to offer.
Unfortunately for the Bull Dogs, Halter did even more damage behind the service line. Using a variety of serves that, at times proved difficult to handle, and supported by some excellent defense from her teammates, Halter led the Rebels on a 14-0 run to close out the first set of the night and set the tone for the rest of the evening in the 4A No. 18 Rebels’ 25-9, 25-20, 25-18 sweep.
“Roncalli is a really good team. They do a nice job defensively and made it difficult for us to put the ball away,” North coach Caitie Greiner said. “There were several long rallies that we fought hard for that did not end in our favor.”
The first set appeared as though it was going to be tight throughout, with neither team able to take control early. After Roncalli (6-1) took an 11-8 lead, the Bull Dogs (1-3) answered right back with a point of their own to make the score 11-9. That, however, was the last point North would score in the first set.
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The second set seemed to continue where the first left off. The Rebels jumped out to a 4-1 lead before the Bull Dogs were able to tally three straight to tie the score. Roncalli answered right back, going on a 10-3 scoring run to take a 14-7 lead. The Rebels then extended their lead to 18-10 before Greiner called a timeout trailing 23-14, and it looked as though the set was over.
North, however, had a different plan. Taking advantage of excellent serving by Maddy Sebahar, the Bull Dogs went on a 6-0 run to close the gap 23-20. But Roncalli was able to hang on and score the final two points to take the set.
Greiner liked the fight she saw in her team.
“I am never happy with a loss, but I saw visible improvement tonight,” she said. “We did not play timid. We didn’t let up in Games 2 and 3. There were a lot of good things tonight that we have been working on.”
The third set seemed to be a mirror image of the second. The Rebels jumped out to a quick 9-3 lead. North fought back to cut the lead to 9-6 before Roncalli outscored the Bull Dogs 12-5 to take a 21-12 lead. Once again, the home team fought back, using a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 21-17 before the Rebels were able to close out the sweep.
It was a busy night for North outside hitter Agustina Fainguersch, who tallied five kills, two solo and four assist blocks and 18 digs. Emma Tynan also had five kills and also contributed 13.
Sebahar recorded 17 digs, while Lily Meyercord and Kate Whaley each led the Bull Dogs in assists with 10. Meyercord served the only ace for North.
