Perry’s Mary Hoersten hits a shot against Lima Senior’s #Mallory Gipson (left) and Alaysha Smith during Tuesday night’s match at Lima Senior.
Don Speck | The Lima News
Commodores. Commodores came into this game in first place in the Northwest Conference with an undefeated six-win record.
In the first set, the Commodores started the game with intensity and passion. They were fired up for this game and showed it when they scored five straight points to start the set. They went onto lead eight to two before Lima Senior called the first timeout of the game. Mary Hoersten was a force on the front early and often. She led her team to a 25-12 win in the first set, as they would go up one set to none.
In the second set, the Spartans found themselves down early nine to three. However, Lima Senior rallied some momentum on points to make a comeback and took the lead, 13-12. From there, it was a battle back and forth between the two teams. Spartans fought hard to tie the game up, but after being tied at 21, Perry took over and won the second set 25-22 to take a two sets to none lead.
In the third set, the Spartans picked up where they left off to give Perry a run for their money again. Both teams battled long plays to make it a tie game at five. Both teams tried to take advantage of any momentum or mistake, but the game was tied once again at ten a piece later in the set. Then, Hoersten would take over as she rallied her teammates to take away the momentum from the home team and go up 22-17. Howeber, the Spartans gained some life and rallied a seven to two run that concluded with an ace to tie the set at 24 a piece. On the longest play of the game, Hoersten finished up a fantastic performance of 13 kills and nine digs with a final kill to give her team the lead. Perry would go onto win in the third set 26-24, as they swept Lima Senior on the road three nothing to get their 12th win on the season. Lexenna Lee stepped up big to help her team as well. She finished the night with six aces, 12 assists, and nine kills. Alana Pernell ended the game with a team high 22 digs on the night.
Commodores head coach Jodi Cartagena was “happy and proud” of how her girls played Tuesday night. “They came to play tonight … the girls always come out with high intensity and that’s what we want them to do. We just need to carry that through, and we did at the end there. It was a good finish for us. Going into tournaments and the end of the season, this is where we need to be, so we just continue to grow from here.”
Having seven seniors on the team is a big plus for Coach Cartagena, and a big part of the success that Perry is having this season. “I have seven seniors on the team that all contribute. Definitely Mary, Lexenna (Lee) with assists, Carlee (Dalton) with assists, we have Takyrah (Mcvay) and Kiya (Manley), they come in clutch as well. My seniors make the job easy for me. They take control and know what needs to be done. They step on the court and they’re in charge, I love that about their leadership skills.”
The Commodores will be back in action on Thursday night at home for Senior night.
Match summary
Perry Leaders: Mary Hoersten 13 Kills, 9 Digs, Lexenna Lee 6 Aces, 12 Assists, 9 Kills, Alana Pernell 22 Digs
Lima Senior Leaders: Mallory Gibson 18 Assists, Almira Soriano 12 Digs, Alaysha Smith 4 Kills, Ali Vanmeter 2 Aces
Justin Dierkes wrote this story for LimaScores.com. Reach The Lima News sports department at 567-242-0451.
