LEWISTON — Contributions throughout the lineup helped Lewiston defeat Edward Little.
The Blue Devils defeated the Red Eddies 25-9, 23-25, 25-16, 25-13 on Thursday in the first varsity volleyball match between the archrivals.
“I feel, quickly looking at the stats after the game, this is definitely the biggest game where we had the biggest spread in stats,” Lewiston coach Nikki Pelletier. “We had a lot of people contributing in a lot of positive ways.”
Kenzie Garcia had 11 serving aces for Lewiston (4-6). Nadifo Heban had nine, and Tori Cox and Aubrey Peer had seven aces each. In all, nine players Blue Devils had a serving ace.
Edward Little (0-8) assistant coach, Christy Keep, who was filling in for head coach Scott Berube, said the Red Eddies can build off the match with Lewiston.
“It’s good to get some momentum going,” Keep said. “We have four games next week and it’s a good way to start that momentum.”
The Blue Devils jumped to a lead in the first set by getting points from Garcia, Peer and Heban.
“I felt like Kenzie was a lot more confident in herself tonight, and that really showed in the smart plays she was making at the net,” Pelletier said. “She was not fearing in making mistakes. She was willing to push herself to make those big plays.”
The Red Eddies got good serves from Maija Bolduc and Kiara Bushman in the second set, during which Edward Little built an early 9-4 lead. The Blue Devils battled back in the middle of the set, but the Red Eddies went on another run to take a 24-18 lead.
“(Bolduc) did pretty well and we had a lot of good serving,” Keep said. “Kiara had some good jump serves, and we had some really good hits at the net. We had some good defense in the back. Everyone played their role well today.”
Lewiston cut the deficit to 24-23, with Cox serving for most of the run.
“It was nervous, but it was OK,” Cox said of serving at the end of the second set.
Nellie Feeney got the set point for Edward Little. It was only the second set the Red Eddies have won this season, their first as a varsity program.
“I am beyond proud,” Keep said of winning the second set. “When I say it’s a big deal, it’s really a big deal to them and to me. Filling in as a coach, and they pulled that off, I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The teams traded the first 14 points of the third set. Lewiston took a 12-7 lead behind Cox’s serving. Edward Little cut the deficit to 13-11, but that was as close as they’d get for the remainder of the set.
Cox again scored crucial points in late in the fourth set to secure the victory.
Cox, a sophomore, has been a swing player from the junior varsity and varsity teams this season.
“She has improved as the season has gone on,” Pelletier said. “She has made some important contributions to the team.”
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