Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
Five area volleyball teams have advanced to compete for their respective district championships.
In Division II, Clay (16-7) rallied from a one-set deficit to take down Fremont Ross in the district semifinal round, which signified their postseason opener. They were slated to face Anthony Wayne for the district crown at Lake High School.
As of press time, stats weren’t available yet from their district semifinal.
In Division IV, Lake and Oak Harbor remained on track to potentially meet in the regional final.
The Flyers (18-5) opened their tournament run with a three-set victory over Vermilion, and they were set to remain at Old Fort High School for a district final against Wauseon.
Mylah Vorst, Harlow Haberland, and Kennedy Falkenberg had seven kills apiece against Vermilion. Lucy Boos tallied a double-double with 15 assists and 13 digs, while Savanna Saunders had 12 assists. Laynie Meadows had 10 digs. Caity Extine had five kills and a team-best three blocks.
Meanwhile, Oak Harbor (20-4) opened its postseason run with a sectional title win over Clyde in four sets. They proceeded to also sweep Bellevue in a district semifinal, advancing to face St. Marys Memorial for the district crown at Miller City High School.
Myley Sandwisch had a team-best 14 kills for Oak Harbor in the win over Bellevue, while Baumgartner added 10.
In the sectional final, Alayna Hall led the way offensively with 16 terminations, while Baumgartner (12) and Sandwisch (10) combined for 22. Ava Lynch led defensively with 32 digs, while Baumgartner (19) and Sandwisch (15) combined for 34 digs. Sandwisch added 27 assists to complete a triple double. Bella Rios produced 14 assists, and Morgan Lalonde added nine digs.
Eastwood (17-7) opened its Division V postseason run with a sweep of Rossford in a sectional championship. They advanced to face Swanton in a district semifinal, where they avoided a reverse sweep with a 15-13 victory in the fifth set. The Eagles will face Ottawa-Glandorf for the district title at Clay High School.
In the district semifinal, the trio of Mack Miller (30 kills, 21 digs), Ivy Schrader (14 kills, 15 digs), and Olivia Riter (46 assists, 11 digs) had double-doubles. Whitley Lubash added 14 digs, while Stella Chlebowski had 12 digs. Addyson Leppelmeier had a team-best five aces, and Riter contributed three, as well.
The victory over Rossford featured 20 kills for Miller, 26 assists and 11 digs from Riter, and 11 digs from Chlebowski. Maya Schmeltz added three blocks, while Leppelmeier, Vanessa Evans, Ivy Schrader, Miller, and Chlebowski had two aces each.
In Division VI, Gibsonburg (16-8) recorded a sweep of Margaretta to win the sectional championship before earning a thrilling five-set victory in reverse-sweep fashion over Lakota in a district semifinal. The Golden Bears will face Sherwood Fairview for the district crown at Hopewell-Loudon.
The win over Margaretta featured 27 combined kills from Leah Hall (16) and Riley Gressman (11). Katie Hall and Gressman added three blocks apiece. Brooklyn Smith (14), Leah Hall (12), and Katie Hall (12) each had double-digit digs. Katie Hall completed a double-double with a team-best 22 digs, and Smith did the same by registering 20 digs.
Other area results
In Division III, Waite (2-15) lost a sectional championship in straight sets to Central Catholic.
In Division V, Genoa (9-14) fell in its sectional championship to Evergreen in straight sets.
In Division VI, Northwood (4-18) and Woodmore (6-17) were swept in their respective sectional championships to Van Buren and Carey, respectively.
In Division VII, Stritch (12-10) fell in straight sets to Danbury in a sectional final.
