LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN, Ga. – Maryville minus the Collegiate Conference of the South Co-Player of the Year was no match for a hot Huntingdon team in a 3-0 loss here Friday afternoon.
Senior setter
Meredith Bonee missed this CCS Tournament semifinal showdown with an illness, and yet, Maryville's reshuffled lineup remained competitive. But the Hawks prevailed 25-18, 25-14 and 25-21 to win their 28th match of the season and advance to Saturday's championship against host Covenant.
After these two teams played a pair of barn-burners during the regular season – each team rallying from 2-0 deficits to claim 3-2 victories – Round 3 promised to be the best of the bunch. That expectation never materialized when Bonee was unable to play.
Friday's match saw just one tie score – 1-1 in the opening set – and zero lead changes. Huntingdon expanded that initial score line to 8-1 and never looked back. The Hawks led 6-1 in the second set and 5-1 in the third to take early command of each stanza.
Third Set Most Competitive
Maryville's best showing was the third set, when they rallied from that four-point deficit to pull within one on three occasions. An
Amii Ingalls service ace and
Landry Frisch kill ignited a 4-0 run that pulled the Scots within 10-9. After Huntingdon stretched the lead,
Ally Sokolow delivered a service ace to draw Maryville within 14-13.
The Hawks pushed ahead again but then got sloppy and committed a string of errors that allowed Maryville to post a 5-1 run that narrowed the lead to 19-18. But the Scots could draw no closer, and the 2022 season came to an end.
The loss ended Maryville's 13-match winning streak that began after an Oct. 5 home loss to Covenant. Maryville atoned for that defeat with a 3-2 thriller over Covenant here on Lookout Mountain, but the anticipated third crack at their Georgia rivals won't happen.
This was Maryville's first neutral court loss of the season after a 7-0 start.
Sokolow posted her first collegiate double-double with 23 assists and 10 digs. All-CCS First Teamer
Isabella Samson just missed a double-double with nine kills and 10 digs, and the All-CCS Second Teamer Ingalls was close as well with eight kills and 10 digs. Maryville's other Second Team selection,
Hannah Potts, returned to action from an injury for the first time in two weeks with playing time in Sets 2 and 3.
Maryville's season ends at 22-9. Huntingdon improves to 28-8 and plays here Saturday against Covenant, which rallied past Berea 3-1 to improve to 20-11. Start time for the championship match is 3 p.m.
