Thursday Volleyball: Lady Lions send 8 seniors out swinging, catapult towards straight-set win over Fillmore; C-R’s Tompkins records 1000th career assist in team’s 3-0 season-ending sweep of Houghton

WELLSVILLE — Eight Lady Lions seniors — Natalie Adams, Lindsay Stuck, Alexa Stuck, Averee Palmatier, Makenna Dunbar, Lexi Irish, Alexis Ireland and Brooklyn Dahlgren have all been right alongside head coach Shannon Steiner since the very beginning of her head coaching journey just a few years ago.

They have won plenty of games, they have shared plenty of memories together. To say that Senior Night on Thursday, which also served as their very last moment together during the regular season, was an emotional one, would be a massive understatement.

In fact, it was a night that Steiner hoped would never come.

“I was secretly dreading tonight, but it turned into an amazing night,” she said. “The relationship I have built with all eight of these girls has been awesome. I will miss them so much. They are an amazing group of girls and athletes, and the entire program will feel the loss of them. I could not be happier to have had the chance to coach them and be a part of their lives.”

But on that night, there was no other way to send the seniors out than with the loudest of bangs.

In a meeting between two teams poised to make a big run through Sectionals beginning next week, it shaped into an explosive beginning of the match, with a long run by the Lady Lions being interrupted by a late comeback from the Lady Eagles of Fillmore to force additional play. But despite, the slight curvature applied by the visitors in green, Wellsville stood tall, as they finished strong to set the tone for the rest of the night and score what was deemed a straight-set regular season-ending Senior Night victory by a 26-24, 25-14, 25-21 count.

“This was a fun game to watch, especially because the game was played by all of the seniors the entire night,” Steiner said. “They had a great energy going into it that they kept throughout the game, and it was so nice to see them play together one final time on their home court.”

All three sets saw a fair share of back-and-forth barbs across the early sequences of battle, but in the first set, Averee Palmatier set the dinner table for an outrageous outing from the service line for the Lady Lions, collecting nine straight service points to unlock an 8-8 deadlock to give them a big lead to work with down the stretch. But the Lady Eagles wouldn’t let the hosts escape their grasp yet, as they fired a gigantic response back themselves — netting 12 of the next 15 points to ultimately force extra play.

Wellsville eventually went on to close the deal on a 26-24 first set win to claim the night’s first match advantage.

The momentum was maintained by the Lady Lions for the remainder of the match, as they garnered another big run of Fillmore in the second set before surviving a back-and-forth exchange from start to finish in the final set of action to claim the straight-set sweep on their home court in front of a packed crowd in the Lion’s Den.

Lindsay Stuck and Makenna Dunbar each had a turn leading the offense, as both Lady Lions recorded a team-high 11 kills, combining for 11 digs on defense along the way. Adding more help was Palmatier, who finished with seven more kills, six digs and five aces.

Natalie Adams pitched in 10 digs to go with three kills and two aces, while setter Lexi Irish (six digs, five aces) handed out 33 assists at the net to round off the scoring for Wellsville.

Statistics for Fillmore were not made available to report upon publication.

The regular season is now over for both teams, as they now await Sectional play next week, as Wellsville finishes with a record of 13-4 overall, while Fillmore concludes at 12-7 overall.

[PHOTOS PROVIDED]

Cuba-Rushford 3, Houghton Academy 0

CUBA — Kate Howe was the last to record such a feat not too long ago. During her time with the Lady Rebels of Cuba-Rushford, Howe was just the second Lady Rebel to reach such a mark in their distinguished volleyball career, having eclipsed it in her final year back in the 2019 season.

Slowly but surely over the course of this season five years later, it was only a matter of time that the special milestone would come back within striking distance once again. In this particular instance, on the very last day of the regular season Thursday night, in front of a packed crowd for their annual Pink Match against visiting Houghton Academy.

The third entrant received their induction into the elite group of volleyball giants, and it was a familiar name for head coach Josh Tompkins. An all too familiar name — his daughter, Kendall Tompkins.

The Lady Rebels junior has been all over the floor all season long conducting electricity in every way, shape and form. Whether it’s setting the offense up at the net, or preventing the ball from crashing down onto the floor. That was no different against the Lady Panthers, when she reached that incredible milestone with a 20-assist game that helped set the tone for a straight-set 25-23, 25-23, 25-20 victory to close their regular season with victories in seven of their last eight games.

“It was a special moment. I’m terrible at sappy stuff, so I told her how special it was when we got home,” Tompkins said. “Only two other players have had over 1,000 career assists at C-R. She is pretty pumped and I am so proud of what she has achieved. But assists are even more awesome because it says a lot about the players and teammates she has had. Someone needs to pass the ball, and someone needs to put the ball on the floor to get an assist.”

Following up Tompkins and her heroic efforts was Raegan Poore, who had seven kills and a pair of blocks. Skylar Gadley finished with five aces and chipped in four more kills for the attack.

“Tonight was our pink match where we raised money for Breast Cancer Awareness. It was pretty awesome to see people come out and support a great cause,” Tompkins said. “As far as the match goes, Houghton is a really tough and scrappy team. They don’t let the ball hit the floor often and they have done a great job with improving their offense throughout the season. I’m glad to have had the night we had. Now, we look forward to one more tournament this weekend before Sectionals after.”

The Lady Panthers were paced by an eight-kill, one-ace game supplied by Julia Winkens. Ellie Brubaker handed out 12 assists to get the offense started, recording a pair of aces along the way from the service line.

Both teams will now await Sectional seeding over the weekend as their regular seasons draw to a close, with Cuba-Rushford finishing at 11-6 overall, while Houghton Academy concludes at 10-7.

Bolivar-Richburg 3, Andover/Whitesville 0

BOLIVAR — A balanced offensive attack aided the Lady Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg in a strong and successful end to their regular season on Thursday, as they set up shop right away and clinched a straight-set victory over visiting Andover/Whitesville by a 25-6, 25-19, 25-12 count.

Leading the charge for the Lady Wolverines was Carmen Crowley and her recording of a team-high seven kills. Following behind was a dynamic night of service from Joey Danaher, who had eight team-high aces to pair with three additional kills.

Jayna Thomas had six aces to pair with three kills and three digs, while setter Willow Worth handed out 14 helpers to couple with five more aces and two kills to round off Bolivar-Richburg.

Statistics for Andover/Whitesville were not made available to report upon publication.

The regular season is now over for both teams as the wait for Sectional seeding this weekend now begins. Bolivar-Richburg concludes with a record of 14-3 overall, while Andover/Whitesville finishes at 0-15.

Genesee Valley/Belfast at Hinsdale - No report.