Lady Crusaders Volleyball Sweep Johnsonburg, Improve to 8-1, Soccer Team Wins

Elk County Catholic continued its strong stretch Tuesday night, completing a three-match road swing with a straight-set victory over Johnsonburg.

The Lady Crusaders entered the match against a Johnsonburg team riding some momentum after capturing the championship at the Port Allegany Tournament over the weekend. ECC quickly took control, however, winning by scores of 25-13, 25-14 and 25-17 to improve to 8-1 on the season. istatvball3_summary_elkcountyca…

“Johnsonburg was coming off a tournament championship, so we knew we were going to have to come in focused and ready to play,” ECC head coach Josh Burrs said. “I thought we did a good job of setting the tone early and not allowing them to get comfortable. We stayed pretty consistent throughout all three sets, and that is something we have been working toward.”

Johnsonburg continued to battle despite falling behind in the match, and several players put together strong individual performances. Mari Dennis led the Ramettes defensively with 19 digs, while Bria McCabe was a factor on both sides of the ball with six kills and 15 digs. Gracie Cherry directed the Johnsonburg offense with 12 assists and added 10 digs defensively.

The Ramettes were coming off one of their strongest weekends of the season after winning the Port Allegany Tournament, and Tuesday’s match gave the two local programs another chance to test themselves as the regular season moves deeper into its second half. Johnsonburg showed its best resistance in the third set, but ECC was able to close out the match with a 25-17 victory.

ECC finished the night with 31 kills, 30 assists, seven aces and 73 digs, getting contributions from throughout the lineup.

Katelyn Myers led the Lady Crusaders offensively with 13 kills, while also adding two aces and eight digs. Bailey Thorwart finished with 11 kills and 11 digs, giving ECC another double-digit performance at the net and in the back row.

Lanie Weisner contributed four kills, four aces, nine digs and a block assist, while Bethany Cunningham added two kills and two digs.

Setter Addison Gradl directed the offense with 27 assists, adding 13 digs and an ace.

While Gradl handles the majority of the setting duties, Isabella Dixon’s role at opposite continues to be an important part of ECC’s offense. Dixon finished with three assists and four digs, often taking the second contact when Gradl is forced to play the first ball or the Lady Crusaders are out of system.

“What Bella does for us is extremely important,” Burrs said. “When Addy has to take the first ball or we get pulled out of system, Bella becomes our setter. That allows us to still run an offense instead of just sending a free ball over the net. Having someone in that opposite position who can put up a good ball for our hitters gives us another option and keeps us aggressive even when the play doesn’t start perfectly.”

Stella Stebick continued to anchor the back row, collecting a team-high 22 digs while also putting down a kill.

Ava Corl came into the match in an offensive role and contributed at the net, recording a block assist while giving ECC another option in the front row. Brynlee Schutz added two digs, while Bella Beimel saw action and recorded one dig.

The victory also completed a demanding stretch of three consecutive road matches for the Lady Crusaders. ECC traveled to Brockway, Punxsutawney and Johnsonburg during the stretch and came away with wins in all three.

“Three road matches in a row is never easy, especially at this point in the season,” Burrs said. “I’m proud of how the girls handled it. We went into three different gyms, stayed focused and found a way to take care of business each night. Now we get to come back home for a big rivalry match, and we know the energy and intensity are going to be different Thursday night.”

The ECC junior varsity team fell to 7-2 on the season after Johnsonburg earned a 2-0 victory by scores of 25-15 and 25-19.

The Lady Crusaders return home Thursday night to face cross-town rival St. Marys. Junior varsity action is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., with the varsity match to follow.

VOLLEYBALL

DISTRICT 9

A-C Valley 3, Punxsutawney 0 (25-12, 25-22, 25-17)

Austin 3, Bradford 2 (23-25, 26-24, 24-26, 25-17, 15-9)

Brockway 3, North Clarion 0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-13)

Wellsboro at Coudersport — No report

Brookville 3, DuBois Central Catholic 0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-22)

Keystone 3, Karns City 0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-14)

Oswayo Valley 3, Hinsdale (N.Y.) 0 (25-9, 25-17, 25-16)

Ridgway 3, Smethport 0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-13)

Union 3, Cranberry 2 (25-20, 23-25, 13-25, 25-20, 15-13)

Hollidaysburg 3, Clearfield 0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-16)

SOCCER

BOYS

DISTRICT 9

Bradford 4, St. Marys 2

Elk County Catholic 5, Kane 0

North Clarion 4, Keystone 1

Brookville 7, Punxsutawney 0