KNOXVILLE — It was “Cancer Awareness” night for the Knoxville volleyball team Tuesday night as they hosted the Comets from Cardinal High School. In a brief but emotional moment prior to the match, Panther senior and cancer survivor Anna Buttell was recognized and her story was told.
Buttell and her teammates then went to work and played near flawless volleyball in winning the first two games 25-6 and 25-8. Then many of the reserves got into the action and brought the Panther express into the winner’s circle with a 25-18 win.
“I was impressed with how we handled the ball,” Knoxville coach Mollie Kietges said. “We passed well, received well and strong serving kept Cardinal off balance. Our hitters played clean volleyball with very few errors and the entire team played smart, solid volleyball.”
The pink clad Panthers honoring cancer survivors served first in game one and with freshman Abbie Kietges at the service line Knoxville ripped off an 11-0 lead. Kietges nailed a pair of aces in the run and Ella Breazeale hammered a pair of kills to the floor. Buttell, Payton Horn and Hannah Dunkin also smashed kills in the run.
The Comets finally broke the service run with a kill by Kolbi Saner, but a serving error gave the ball back to the Panthers. Another freshman, Addy Dunkin, served up the next four points and suddenly the lead was 16-1. In that flurry Knoxville had a kill and a block by Brittany Bacorn and kills by Buttell and Breazeale. The Panthers coasted to the win with some impressive passing and hitting.
A kill by Megan Ward and a block by Emarie Finch along with a Panther hitting error allowed the Comets to stay close at 5-3 in game two and then the Panthers shifted to a higher gear. The serving of Katie Deaver and Mackenzie Karr produced a 10-4 Panther lead.
A Panther serving error and an ace serve by Emma Becker cut the deficit to 10-6 and then Bacorn stepped to the service line. Six serves later the score was 17-6. In that run Rylyn McCarty pounded home four kills while Hannah Dunkin had a kill and a block and Bacorn smoked an ace serve. Kietges then put the frosting in the cake with a seven-point service run in which she fired a pair of aces home and Buttell closed the game down with a kill and a block.
Game three found Kietges at the service line to get it started and she reeled off the first six points with a pair of aces and Buttell added a kill. The two teams traded points until it was 9-5. A kill by McCarty gave the serve to Bacorn soon it was 14-5. That large lady was beginning to sing.
But the Comets did not go quietly. With Brinlee Ostrander at the service line the Panther lead was cut to 17-15 with a pair of kills by Finch leading them. The Panthers found the answer just in the nick of time as Addy Dunkin served the next six points and she rifled a pair of aces across the net. The Panthers then used a kill by Bacorn and an ace by Deaver to slam the door on the Comets.
“The third set we showed up and played better,” Cardinal coach Candice Major said. “In the first two sets we seemed to be a little awe struck. It wasn’t that we played poorly, but that Knoxville is just a very good team. We showed that we could play a higher level of volleyball in the third set and we will build on that.”
Knoxville will be off until Tuesday when they travel to Centerville where a win will assure them of no less than a tie for the SCC crown. The Comets will host New London on Monday and then go to Albia on Tuesday.
Cardinal 6 8 18
Knoxville 25 25 25
Knoxville Stats:
Serving – Abbie Kietges 29/29 7A, Brittany Bacorn 15/16 2A, Addy Dunkin 15/16 2A, Katie Deaver 3/3 1A, Mackenzie Karr 3/4, Hannah Dunkin 2/4 1A, Ella Breazeale 1/2, Cally Landis 1/1
Kills – Breazeale 8, McCarty 7, Anna Buttell 7, H. Dunkin 4, Bacorn 3, Payton Horn 2, Jordyn Counts 1, Iselyn Prevo 1.
Blocks – H. Dunkin 2, Buttell 2, McCarty 2, Bacorn 1.
Digs – Keitges 10, Bacorn 8, H. Dunkin 8, Deaver 5, A. Dunkin 2, Buttell 1, Karr 1, Horn 1, Marlea Cox 1, Breazeale 1.
Assists – Bacorn 27, A. Dunkin 1, Keitges 1.
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