Two nights after battling back from a first-set defeat to knock off Bloomington North, Columbus North was faced with trying to pull off a similar feat on Thursday night.
This time, the Bull Dogs couldn’t quite pull it off. They came close in the second and third sets, but Martinsville prevailed for a 25-13, 25-23, 26-24 victory.
“We came out slow in Game 1,” North coach Caitie Greiner said. “We never really had momentum the entire night. That’s been a struggle for us this season, and we’re continuing to work through it.”
The Artesians (6-4) jumped out to a 17-5 lead in the opening set and never looked back. The Bull Dogs (2-4) led 23-21 in the second set, but Martinsville scored the final four points to take a two sets-to-none lead.
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North jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the third set before the Artesians came back to take an 18-13 lead. Four consecutive points by the Bull Dogs cut it to 18-17, then five in a row from Martinsville made it 22-17 before Kate Whaley served North back into a 22-22 tie.
From there, the teams traded points until the Artesians scored the final two to take the match.
“All three games, we had too many unforced errors,” Greiner said. “It’s a mental roadblock that we’re working through.”
Emma Tynan pounded 13 kills, Lily Meyercord recorded 17 assists, Lauryn James and Agustina Fainguersch each had one block assist, Maddy Sebahar notched 26 digs and Fainguersch served three aces to lead North.
Also for the Bull Dogs, Gabby Genth pounded eight kills, and Meyercord and Lauren Opalka each served two aces. Carley Finke tallied 18 digs, and Tynan added 15 digs.
“We made some switches that I think helped with the intensity, but it really came down to, Martinsville had more intensity than us,” Greiner said. “They wanted it more. They were able to shake mistakes off, and we weren’t.”
