Jonathan Alder’s Abby Jester (9) sets the ball as teammate Emma Shepherd (right) goes up for a kill Saturday afternoon against Springfield Shawnee. The Lady Pioneers won the match in four sets.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Tim Miller)
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Jonathan Alder’s volleyball team wrapped up another stellar regular season on Saturday.
It wasn’t, however, as easy as one might have expected.
The Lady Pioneers, who successfully defended their Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail Division championship, needed four sets to defeat Springfield Shawnee.
JA (18-4 overall and 8-1 in the conference) took the match by scores of 25-19, 18-25, 28-26 and 25-19.
Neither team could gain much in the way of prolonged momentum during the opening set.
The Braves held a 10-5 lead after Alder committed a hitting error.
That margin did not last for long as the Lady Pioneers began clawing their way back into contention.
A backward tip from Abby Jester tied the score at 12-all and sparked a mini run.
Ava Francis, who finished the match with 22 kills, pushed the ball over the net for a 16-12 advantage.
JA was called for a double hit as Shawnee (14-8) narrowed its deficit to 16-14.
Kills from Francis and Corinne Parker (20 for the day) gave Alder an 18-15 lead.
Jonathan Alder finally gained a little breathing room when a tip kill from Emma Shepherd pushed the score to 21-16.
Kayleigh Hall followed suit as the Pioneers went on top 23-17.
JA won the set when Shawnee sent a block sailing out of bounds.
The Lady Pioneers, who were missing 6-1 senior Kortney Reynolds (ankle injury), could never get in synch during the ensuing game.
The Braves maintained leads of six and seven points for much of the set.
Francis came up with a kill after Parker pulled out a low dig. That point, however, only pulled Alder to within 22-15.
JA committed a couple of passing miscues as Shawnee was able to even the series at 1-1.
If there was one thing that Pioneer coach Kim Hayes liked about her team on Saturday, it was its fighting spirit.
Alder trailed 9-2 early in the third game, but never once thought about surrendering.
“I liked the way we fought back,” said Hayes. “Shawnee is a very competitive team.”
Shawnee led by as much as 21-14 and needed only four more points to put the Lady Pioneers in a bind.
Jonathan Alder, however, kept chipping away at the lead.
The Braves committed a few hitting mistakes and that enabled Alder to fight back to a 22-all deadlock.
The next several minutes were nerve-racking for fans on both sides of the gymnasium.
There were stalemates at points 24, 25 and 26 as each team had an answer to the other’s comeback.
Unfortunately, JA lost Jester to a possible concussion during the action. She is the second Lady Pioneer to have recently suffered a head injury of that nature.
Hunter Larison is still nursing concussion symptoms as well.
“We are really injured right now,” said Hayes.
JA pulled out the victory on back-to-back tip kills from McKenzie Wright and Shepherd.
It was Alder’s turn to get out of the gate quickly during the fourth set.
The Lady Pioneers jumped out to an 11-2 lead and later held a 17-9 margin on a kill by Francis.
Shawnee brought the battle to Alder and took advantage of a number of Pioneer mistakes.
JA committed enough miscues to allow the Braves to pull to within 20-19.
Parker, however, came through with a couple of big plays late in the set.
She blocked the ball and pulled up at the net. She didn’t touch the ball on Shawnee’s return offering, which went out of play.
Parker followed with another block that put JA at set point, 24-19.
“Corinne showed her senior leadership down the stretch,” said Hayes.
The match ended when Shawnee sent the ball into the net.
Hayes was also pleased with two other players.
“Jaden Phelps, a freshman, came in and played well after Abby went out,” she said. “Kylie Ricker also finished with three ace serves. That’s the best game she’s played all year.”
With the regular season now in the books, Alder will set its sights on the Division II tournament.
The Lady Pioneers will open the post-season today at 6 p.m. by hosting Columbus Horizon Science Academy.