Streaking ‘Bolts hand ‘Canes fifth straight loss

Jacob Marrocco
Posted 10/1/15

The Warwick Vets girls’ volleyball team fell in three straight sets to Cranston East on Tuesday night on the road, handing the ‘Canes their fifth consecutive defeat in Division II-South.

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Streaking ‘Bolts hand ‘Canes fifth straight loss

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The Warwick Vets girls’ volleyball team fell in three straight sets to Cranston East on Tuesday night on the road, handing the ‘Canes their fifth consecutive defeat in Division II-South.

Vets had to make several adjustments on the court heading into the game, according to head coach Jean McGarry. Senior captain Emily Walason was injured with 10 minutes left of practice on Monday, and there is no definite timetable for her return.

The unexpected setback forced players out of position, including senior captain and setter Abigail Vermette to move to libero, against a ‘Bolts team that hadn’t lost a set since Sept. 11.

“The person who stepped up today was actually my libero [Vermette], who is a very good passer, which is why you put her at the libero position, but she’s also trained as an outside hitter,” McGarry said. “So for her it was a very different job, but I think that she did well. She had a few kills tonight which is gonna work in her advantage to move forward in that position. I may train some other girls [for libero] because we missed her passing tonight, but I don’t think she did a bad job at all.”

If the ‘Canes were out of synch, it was tough to tell because they never went quietly.

The ‘Canes (1-6) led 5-2 early on in the first set, but soon found themselves in 11-6 and 15-10 holes. They never let the ‘Bolts pull away, though. Strong play from Vermette, junior co-captain Rhianna Bellows and freshman Kyara Harris, paired with several East service errors, kept Vets close.

“They never did give up,” McGarry said. “That is something I will commend them on. They worked to the best of their ability at every position, and we did have some confusion. But there are some things that I think could have made it a little bit closer. Some basic skills that we just didn’t capitalize on.”

Harris had a key kill that pulled Vets within 19-17. Two consecutive East miscues led to a tied score and a ‘Bolts timeout.

The ‘Canes would again push it out to a 22-22 tie, but East rattled off three straight points to secure the set victory. A Harris service error was followed by a McKenzie Richards kill and Genna Companatico tip to give East the 25-22 win.

“Missed serves in Game 1 were really detrimental,” McGarry said.

Vets showed more of the same fight in the second set. The ‘Canes started down 4-1 before a couple of Harris service aces brought the score out to 6-6. The next serve from Harris hit the net and put East up 7-6, a lead it would not relinquish.

Despite the ‘Bolts (4-3) leading throughout the second game, the ‘Canes never let it get too out of hand. East looked like it would shut Vets down after taking an 18-12 lead late in the set, but the ‘Canes kept at their comeback. An East service error and two aces from Harris made it 18-15.

East would then jump out to a 24-18 advantage behind two service aces and a valuable block-and-kill from Victoria Bowry in front. The ‘Canes were able to work themselves back into it, though, with help from a service error and two aces from junior Arianna Pafume. It wasn’t enough as East was able to capture game point on the next volley, taking a commanding 2-0 lead into the third set.

“I would say passing in Games 2 and 3 really hurt us,” McGarry said. “We started to lose some of our confidence.”

Mistakes plagued the ‘Canes during the next battle, as a service error put them behind 8-3 early on, but again they would make it interesting. East service miscues combined with a couple of booming kills from Harris brought the ‘Canes within 1, 13-12.

From that point on, though, the ‘Bolts manufactured six consecutive points to take a 19-12 lead. The ‘Canes would get within four, 19-15, but East reeled off a 6-1 run to close them out, 25-16.

“You have to play with what you’re given,” McGarry said. “I think they made the best of it and they worked hard to the very last point. They never wanted to quit on it and that’s something they can take with them and hopefully move forward to the next game.”

Despite some uncertainty ahead, the ‘Canes’ easy upcoming schedule gives the squad a chance to find some rhythm.

Vets will host West Warwick (2-4) this Friday at home before traveling to winless Narragansett (0-6) next Wednesday. The ‘Canes swept the Mariners in Warwick on Sept. 9 for their only win of the season thus far.

“We walk into every game thinking that we can go in and take it,” McGarry said. “We can take the match if we want it. You gotta bring your A-game and do the best you can. Tonight that wasn’t enough for us, but we have the potential. We’ve got West Warwick and then we get back to the second half of the season, and I think the girls are realizing that every game we play we’re in.”

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