Head coach Ashley Buckingham’s team did something Thursday they haven’t done in a long time. They beat the Bellmont Braves and they did it in style, sweeping the 3A powerhouse in straight sets in the Stardome, 25-21, 25-20, 25-13.
The Starfire program hadn’t beaten Bellmont in a generation’s time, with the last victory coming back in 1999 – a year in which the Braves still went on to win a 3A sectional title.
The Stars dominated the opening set, never allowing the Braves to gain a foothold in the match.
The second set was a different story and the teams traded points with ties at 14, 15, 16, and 17 points. The home team only yielded the lead for one point though, when Bellmont led 16-15, and they quickly regained momentum and went on to take the second, 25-20.
South Adams won seven straight points in the third to push their lead to 13-3 and never looked back.
The loss for the Braves will leave them tremendously short on confidence ahead of a key weekend in the team’s schedule. They’ll return to Yorktown to play Westfield, Crown Point, Zionsville and McCutcheon in best-of-three matches. They’ll then have to return to a tough matchup Tuesday on 92.7 FM against the Heritage Patriots.
For South Adams, the win is a feather in their cap, but they have been on a roll for two weeks and it will not have come as a surprise to fans of the program. Coach Buckingham’s team has not dropped a set in six matches since their loss to Winchester – the only loss of the season so far for the Starfires. They’ll take a weekend off and play across the state line Monday at Parkway.
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