It’s no longer a rebuilding situation for the Delaware Hayes girls volleyball team.
Monday night’s straight-set non-league victory over Mount Vernon shows just how far the Pacers have come under head coach Liz Kaylor-Palmer.
“This is our season … for sure,” she said. “We’ve been building for the last two seasons … and the girls are hungry. They want to prove to themselves and their families, and also to their school and their community, the amount of work that they’ve been putting in.”
The last time Delaware and Mount Vernon played, the Yellow Jackets swept both matches when the two were a part of the OCC-Capital.
The Pacers (6-2) defeated MV 25-14, 25-23, 25-17 behind solid service; serving up 12 aces.
“We started serving more aggressive (in the first set),” said Kaylor-Palmer, whose team rallied for 14 of the final 16 points to win the set. “We talked about being more aggressive and keeping them out of system and I think that’s what was the huge difference in that game.”
The Pacers used a 9-1 run to come back from a six-point deficit to win the second set.
Kaylor-Palmer has the same core of players she’s had for three years. The team is more experienced and is poised to make a run.
“I think it comes from experience,” Kaylor-Palmer said. “I would say all of our seniors on our current roster — all of our juniors on our current roster — have been playing on varsity for the third season now and my sophomores are playing their second.”
And that’s why she’s back this season, though it’ll be her last. She’s moving to Ann Arbor when the season is over.
“I knew this would be a good year and I knew all their hard work would pay off and I wanted to be a part of it and I’m happy to be here … happy I stayed,” Kaylor-Palmer said.
She wanted to see it through.
The Pacers were led by Julia Kaylor, who had 7 kills and 3 aces. Hadlee Bruns also led with 7 kills.
Freshman Anna Johnson led with 14 assists and 4 aces and Julia Justice finished with a team-high 3 blocks.
Addy Mullins had 11 kills and Molly Burnside added 5, while Tonya Merillat led with 10 digs for the Yellow Jackets (0-2).
Delaware resumes OCC-Cardinal action tonight at 7 p.m. at Thomas Worthington.
GIRLS TENNIS
Big Walnut won on a couple courts, but it wasn’t quite enough as host Westerville Central notched a 3-2 non-league win Monday in Westerville.
Golden Eagle winners included Macie Kercsmar, who earned a 6-4, 6-1 decision at first singles; and the doubles duo of Katie Germann and Kayleigh Cummins, who won 6-1, 6-4 at first doubles.
GIRLS SOCCER
Buckeye Valley continued its hot start to the season Monday, rolling past host River Valley 12-0.
The Barons, now 5-0 overall and 1-0 in league play, certainly spread the wealth. Each goal was scored by a different player as Daelynn Rosser, Hannah Fenstermaker, Ellen Riley, Selina Seliskar, Faith Durbin, Liz Gedde, Megan Hon, Gabrielle Legg, Kennedy Wirth, Ali Granger, Hannah Cowan and Dominique Legg found the back of the net.
BOYS SOCCER
Jack Rotondo and Felipe Scharff, both freshmen, combined to put the Barons up 1-0 in the ninth minute and Buckeye Valley never looked back, collecting a 3-1 win over visiting River Valley Monday in Delaware.
Scharff found Rotondo on a corner kick to open the game’s scoring before Ben Daily and Eli Aquino, another pair of freshmen, scored in the 43rd and 75th minutes, respectively, to put the game out of reach.
Garrett Passett found the back of the net in the 76th minute to get River Valley on the board and smooth out the scoring summary.
Cole Davis, who split time with Jack Scheeler in the BV (2-2-0) goal, finished with three saves.
FIELD HOCKEY
Rachel Kickbusch and Emma Brown scored off feeds from Grace Cory and Riley Doyle to lift Olentangy to a 2-0 win over visiting Bishop Hartley Monday in Lewis Center.
Erika Brehm notched the shutout with nine saves in the Braves net.
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