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Dragons Knock Off Panama In Five

CCAA Central Champs Suffer First Defeat

Maple Grove celebrates after beating previously undefeated Panama in CCAA Central Division volleyball action Thursday in Panama. P-J photos by Mark L. Anderson

PANAMA — The last team to hand Panama a regular-season volleyball loss had the magic touch once again Thursday evening.

Trading sets back and forth all the way to a fifth-and-final frame, Maple Grove (17-2, 14-2) was able to finish with a 25-18, 17-25, 25-23, 19-25, 27-25 Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Central Division win against the previously unbeaten Panthers (17-1, 13-1).

While the Red Dragons used a team effort to come away with the win in hostile territory, there was no question who shined the brightest when everything was on the line.

With the evening deadlocked at 25-25, it was Maddie Welsh who came away with a tip winner for Maple Grove. That gave the Red Dragons a long-awaited match point, and the senior once again came up with the right stuff, burying an overhand kill for her 15th and final of the night as the cheers rained down.

“She did a great job just executing,” Maple Grove coach Bayley Johnson said of Welsh. “Seeing where the ball needed to be … she did it. We had a game plan and she stuck with it and did a great job.”

Maple Grove’s Maddie Welsh battles Panama’s Kylie Schnars at the net Thursday evening.

Panama held a 23-21 lead in the fifth, but Maple Grove was able to remain calm in the face of adversity as Alyssa Steen continued her strong setting for the Red Dragons, finishing the day with 45 assists in addition to 15 digs and three aces.

“Alyssa did do a great job. She came through on some service points when it was a tight match and that can be hard when you are under pressure,” Johnson said. “We worked a lot in practice on moving that ball and making those blockers move.”

Leading the Panthers in the fifth was the hitting of Kylie Schnars, who has played an even larger role for Panama in the absence of Alexys Marsh, who has missed several weeks due to a finger injury, forcing a change in strategy from Panama coach Tammy Hosier.

“It puts in two new subs and a position change,” Hosier said of the loss. “I had to do a lot of moving. Natalie Angeletti is typically my outside, and I had to move her to the middle.”

Angeletti made the most of her new position, leading Panama with a pair of tip winners early on in the opening frame. The first was tied at 15-15 and once again at 17-17, but Maple Grove was able to pull away with a service ace by Courtney Hemminger and a tip off the hot hand of Welsh.

An overhand by Bre Hill and a miscommunication on the part of the Panthers granted the Red Dragons their first win of the night.

Along with Welsh, Hill reaped the benefits of setting from Steen on her way to 26 kills and 19 digs.

“She played a really huge role in our offense,” Johnson said of Hill. “She did a great job executing our hits.”

After falling into a one-game hole, Panama was able to make a quick recovery, breaking out to a 10-6 lead in the second on the back of kills by Angeletti and another from Schnars. Schnars added a service ace, Angeletti an overhand finish and another tip as the Panthers grabbed a 17-9 margin.

Angeletti closed out that game as well, on her way to a 21-kill, eight-dig, six-block performance for the hosts.

In what was perhaps the most important stretch of the night for Maple Grove, the Red Dragons were able to overcome a five-point hole in the third.

As Panama built an 11-6 lead, Hill picked up a tip winner to keep her team alive.

The Panthers maintained the lead all the way to 17-13, when Maple Grove used the setting of Steen and hitting of Hill to bring things back to even.

Steen kept her team alive once again with a strong serve and then a push winner before Sam Snow set up Welsh for the decisive point of that frame.

Despite playing on the road, Maple Grove had the benefit of a well-represented crowd on their side.

“Our fans really try to support all of our sports, and we appreciate that. It makes it a fun environment,” Johnson said. “They were excited. Panama is a great team and it is a big win for us. It gave them a lot of confidence to keep working hard going in to playoffs.”

Schnars led her team to a 20-15 margin in the fourth, while Marra Hovey added three service aces to lead the hosts.

NOTES: Welsh finished with four blocks, while Snow had 23 digs. … Madalyn Bowen finished with 36 digs, 12 kills and two blocks. … Schnars had16 kills and seven blocks while Maci Johnson added 20 digs.

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