THE PLAINS — It’s not exactly about reaching the top, it’s all about doing what you can to stay there.
Following a massive divisional victory over Nelsonville-York the week prior to obtain sole control of first place in the Tri-Valley Conference-Ohio, Athens jumped back into conference play on Tuesday night in hectic fashion.
Facing off in an emotionally-charged rivalry game, the Bulldogs (12-2, 6-0 TVC-Ohio) were almost taken to the limit at home by Alexander, fending off a late comeback to secure a wild four-set victory. The final set went into extras as the Spartans (8-6, 4-2 TVC-Ohio) attempted to extend it to five sets. By the end of the night, the scoreboard read 25-19, 25-8, 18-25, 28-26.
To Alexander’s credit, it was the first time in six TVC-Ohio games that Athens had dropped a set in the match.
Despite going up against the division’s best on the road, Alexander seemed more than prepared to battle the Bulldogs in the opening moments. Quickly jumping ahead, the Spartans held off Athens’ comeback efforts for a few moments before the two schools found themselves deadlocked at 10 apiece in the opening set.
Both teams traded points to be tied at 14 all before the Bulldogs decided to pull away. Behind a string of scorching serves from Smith, Athens broke free late, ultimately going on a 9-5 run to secure the initial set of the night.
That momentum from ending the first set on a high note carried over completely into the following. Immediately jumping out in front, the Bulldogs seemingly had a 6-1 lead in the blink of an eye. A few moments later, Athens extended to a 12-6 lead, forcing Spartans’ coach Lauren Hill to call a timeout to slow things down.
That didn’t exactly do much in the moment with the Bulldogs scoring four straight out of the break, forcing Alexander into its second timeout in just a few minutes. Athens scored another four straight points before the Spartans could do anything, making it a 20-6 lead at one point.
The Bulldogs eventually shut things down the rest of the way with an emphatic block at the net from Monday serving as the set-clinching point.
Going up against the league’s best while on the road and facing a 2-0 deficit, things could’ve easily fallen apart for Alexander in the moment. Instead, the Spartans really made this one tense.
Responding more than admirably to the challenge place in front, the Spartans immediately jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the third set and forced Athens’ head coach Hailee Hart into a timeout.
Just as the Bulldogs did the set prior, Alexander used the timeout to regroup and continue to roll. Athens started to fight back, closing the gap slightly at first but the Spartans simply pulled away. Alexander picked up a vital stretch of five straight points to make it a 19-11 game before eventually making it a double-digit lead.
Sitting with the score at 24-14, the Bulldogs scored four straight to mount a comeback effort but it was just too much of a lead to overcome as Alexander stole the third set, extending the night for at least a few more minutes.
The fourth and ultimately final set was a back-and-forth affair between two heated rivals quickly turning this one into an instant class. Towards the final moments of the night, Alexander took a 20-19 lead before Athens called its final timeout of the night.
The Bulldogs responded with three straight points to open up a 22–20 advantage before the Spartans tied things up at 23 apiece. As great teams do, Athens eventually shut things down in extras, taking the final set to secure the exciting victory and stay atop the divisional standings.
The Bulldogs next hit the court on Thursday, traveling out to McArthur to take on Vinton County in a TVC-Ohio tilt. Alexander also stays in conference, going out to Nelsonville-York on Thursday night in a rematch with the talented Buckeyes team.
Local News
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