Top-ranked Patriots tame Bears, 3-0

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The top-ranked team in the state didn’t disappoint at Saturday’s Volley for the Cure match as Olentangy Liberty improved to 10-0 on the season with a three-set win over host Olentangy Berlin.

The Bears scored the first two points of the opening set, but the Patriots used a quick 10-3 run to take control. Berlin’s Rozalyn Zielinski hammered home a kill to pull her team within six, 14-8, but that’s as close as it would get as Liberty took the opening set 25-14.

Courtney Higgins had a kill to give the Bears a 2-1 second-set lead, but back-to-back kills from Claire Mrukowski put the Patriots on top for good. Mrukowski and Ana Cate Loftus teamed up for a block later in the set as Liberty used a pair of 7-3 runs to take a commanding 14-6 edge.

Kills by Zielinski and Kadee Goolsby tightened things up a bit, but a Gabi Moulton kill gave the Patriots a 25-13 win.

The Bears battled in the third set — easily the most competitive of the three — but Liberty got it done down the stretch to smooth out the scoring summary with a 25-22 win in the third and final set.

The Patriots were powered by Mrukoswki, who had a team-best nine kills; Abbey Queen and Hannah Zipfel, who had three aces apiece; Moulton, who finished with 23 assists; and Avery Tokarski, who finished with three blocks in the win.

Higgins led Berlin with 10 kills. Other standouts included Jules Suozzi, who had 14 digs; Ava Fate, who finished with four blocks; and Phoebe Durst, who collected 19 assists.

The two teams, through ticket sales, a 50-50 raffle, silent auction and more, raised more than $3,000 — $1,000 per set — for the Susan G. Komen Foundation to support cancer research.

Olentangy Liberty’s Ana Cate Loftus (9) and Elaina Richardson (28) try and block a shot by Olentangy Berlin’s Emmy Bush during Saturday’s Volley for the Cure match in Delaware.
https://www.delgazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/40/2022/09/web1_libblock.jpgOlentangy Liberty’s Ana Cate Loftus (9) and Elaina Richardson (28) try and block a shot by Olentangy Berlin’s Emmy Bush during Saturday’s Volley for the Cure match in Delaware. Ben Stroup | The Gazette

By Ben Stroup

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