The Norwell Knights may have entered Tuesday’s showdown with Bellmont with a 23-3 record, but waltzing into the Teepee and stealing an NE8 match away from the Braves takes more than a shiny record. The Braves took it to the Knights, winning all three sets by identical 25-19 scores.
Editor’s Note: No stats, scores or information were provided to WZBD for their match on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the South Adams Starfires were unable again to get past Woodlan, just three days after the Warriors claimed the ACAC tourney title.
The victory for coach Craig Krull over his former team comes less than a week from the upcoming sectional draws, where local volleyball fans will be reminded that local 3A teams have been given a two-year reprieve from the Bellmont juggernaut, as the Braves have been forced to spend this year and last year amongst the giant schools of the Hoosier State.
Norwell reached last year’s sectional title match against Heritage, where the Patriots moved on with their first title since 2006. Both teams were soundly beaten by the Braves last year in 3-0 sweeps.
The match was a fond farewell for Bellmont’s seniors, giving the crowd in Decatur a chance to thank the team for the memorable trips to the State Finals when they were freshmen and sophomores, but also to show the respect for the girls who had to spend their two years as upper-classmen in 4A, rather than where they belong (in 3A as a school of just 650).
MaryKate Scheumann’s last match on the home court at BHS ended with a kill rate above 50%. The performance also pushed Scheumann over 400 kills on the season for the third straight season. With a handful of games left to play in her career, the Purdue-bound Scheumann has 1575 career kills.
Taylor Sutter finished second on the team in kills with six.
Senior Ella Ross had an outstanding service effort with four aces. Classmate Lilly Selking led the Braves with 18 assists and fellow senior Quinn Buchan had five digs and an ace.
The night also allowed senior Alyssa Gumbel to be recognized, as well. The PFW-bound hitter finished her career with 493 kills despite not playing this year due to knee surgeries.
The Braves’ quest for a conference title will continue Thursday night when they travel to DeKalb to take on a Barons team that is just 6-17.
South Adams took their second shot at Woodlan in a matter of days, this time in the Stardome, but the result was no different, as the Warriors prevailed in four sets, 25-22, 25-19, 19-25, 25-22.
Reagan Bollenbacher had 11 kills and 20 digs for the Stars.
Ana Lehman and Reece Beitler each had seven kills in the loss for South Adams.
Other Local Scores
Rochester 3 Wabash 2
Maconaquah 3 Whitko 1
Roncalli 3 Zionsville 0
FW Snider 3 Lakewood Park Christian 0
Homestead 3 FW Northrop 0
Jay County 3 Southern Wells 0
Angola 3 Churubusco 0
Carroll (FW) 3 NorthWood 0
Mississinewa 3 Blackford 2
Oak Hill 3 North Miami 1
Columbia City 3 DeKalb 1
Bishop Luers 3 FW North Side 0
Manchester 3 Northfield 0
Huntington North 3 New Haven 0
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