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| Jane Collymore led the Sound Premier Volleyball Team with 11 kills against the M.O.B Image Courtesy of Dig That Shot Photography |
The Sound Premier Volleyball Team defeated the M.O.B. in all
four sets played at Lake Stevens Volleyball Training Center on Saturday
night. The match was the first against
an opponent for The Sound whose only previous showcase event was an inter-squad
scrimmage on February 22 in Puyallup. 106
fans came out for the match against M.O.B and were treated to a highly
competitive event.
The M.O.B took control of the first set behind the powerful
hitting of former Sound PVL player Jenny Freed, who led all hitters on the
night with 17 kills, but it was the outside hitting duo of former USA National
Team member Jane Collymore and reigning Greater Northwest Athletic Conference
Player of the Year Marlayna Geary who combined for 13 kills in the first set
and led the Sound to a narrow 27-25 comeback victory.
Sound Head Coach Bill Neville, adjusted the line-up for the
second set giving players a chance to be looked at in different combinations as
he mulls over the team selection for the teams upcoming trip to Spokane for
their first ever regular season Premier Volleyball League Match on March
29. Sara Bendorf and Lindsey Denman
replaced Collymore and Geary and the M.O.B took advantage of some early serve
receive problems as the pair got up to speed.
The big blocking duo of Jessica VanZant and Katie Silliman
combined for five blocks in the second set and Vanzant added four kills to keep
the Sound in the match through their struggles.
At the end, it was the savvy play of setter Gretchen Killebrew that put
away the M.O.B with a couple of dump kills.
The Sound earned a 25-23 victory to take a two set lead into the
intermission.
After the intermission, which featured a serving for prizes
contest for the junior players in attendance, Neville again shuffled his
line-up. Collymore returned to the match
and teamed with Bendorf. Whitney Buck
returned to the match as setter and Deviny Mo made an appearance playing
Opposite.
In midst of all of the changes, it was the defensive duo of
Jessica Hansen and Leilani Ramsey (both playing libero) who stole the show in
set three. Their adjustments to the
M.O.B hitters produced a series of crowd pleasing digs and provided the Sound a
more comfortable victory than in the first two sets.
With the result of the best of five series decided, the
teams agreed to play one more set to allow coach Neville the chance to look at
a couple more combinations and give his team additional quality competition
ahead of the trip to Spokane. The Sound
responded with their best effort of the night.
As a team they earned 18 of their 25 points on 13 kills, four blocks and
one ace while committing very few errors.
Next up for the Sound Premier Volleyball Team is a Pair of
Premier Volleyball League regular season matches against the Evergreen Region
PVL Team. The first will be March 29 at
Reese Court on the Campus of Eastern Washington University. The second match of the home and home series
will be at the Lake Stevens Volleyball Training Center on April 13.
