Covington’s Hollan Koffer drives a kill past the Lehman defense in Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the Cavaliers. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Julie Wright)
Covington improved to 5-0 in Three Rivers Conference play with an impressive shift of momentum, beating Lehman 3-1 in Tuesday night volleyball.
Sidney, OH – Prior to Tuesday’s conference meeting with visiting Covington, some of the remnants of Greg Snipes’ glory years as a three-time state champion at Lehman, and now parents, reminisced about a return to volleyball glory.
But afterwards, Lehman volleyball coach Carolyn Dammeyer smiled and talked about her current team’s youth, and inexperience.
“They were the more aggressive team tonight, and we were the tipping team,” said Dammeyer following the Buccaneers 3-1 win over Lehman (5-6). “We weren’t aggressive enough.
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“You can’t do that against a team like Covington because they are very aggressive, they play great defense, and they serve tough. So, when we don’t run an offense and hit back at them you’re not going to score many points.”
Covington (7-2) was defending an unblemished record in league play (4-0), coming off six straight wins in which they had dropped only three sets – the most impressive being their 3-0 win over Russia last Saturday, a match that was unquestionably a confidence-builder.
And Stephanie Robinson’s team exhibited that confidence with consistency, taking the first set 25-18, dropping the second 25-19, then finishing out the Cavaliers 25-19 and 25-21.
Covington’s Taylor Kirker sets for a teammate during Tuesday TRC match with Lehman.
“Our whole season has been about fighting and battling back,” said Robinson, flashing a satisfied smile. “We want to play aggressively and make the other team make the mistakes.”
And they did that Tuesday after a first set win that teetered back and forth before Covington finally pulled ahead 13-9, then kept Lehman at arm’s length, leading by as much as 7 points throughout, and finishing 7 points ahead, 25-18.
Lehman resuscitated enough during the timeout between sets to come back and and go on a 7-2 run to lead 14-8 in the second, then capitalized on some Covington defensive lapses and hitting errors to extend that lead to 17-9. But Covington turned the tables enough to close that deficit to five points before dropping the set, 25-19.
Volleyball is a game of momentum, and Lehman seemed to have it as they finished the second set. But…the team that came out for the third set was not the same Lehman team that won the second, and quickly fell behind 5-0. Covington picked up on it, put the pedal to the floor, and never allowed Lehman to recover from their inconsistent start. A devastating 6-1 run by Covington pushed them out to a 14-8 lead, thanks to aggressive hitting that kept finding the floor in the middle of the Cavaliers’ defense.
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“That was a difference maker,” said Dammeyer. “We didn’t close our block like we needed to, they saw the hole in the middle of the court and capitalized. We weren’t running to get the ball, we did the old diving thing instead of moving our feet.”
But, Lehman had enough to go on their own 4-1 run to close, but again, their inconsistency with handling the Covington offense proved to be their undoing. The Buccaneers ran out to an eight-point lead at 17-9 before closing out the set at 25-19.
Lehman’s Kailee Rank is a ‘hitter’ and “leads the conference in kills,” says coach Carolyn Dammeyer.
Covington, impressively, lists just two seniors on their varsity roster, and is heavily sophomore dominant. And once they got the match lead at 2-1 they played like a race horse that could see the finish line. Again they got out to a 5-0 lead in the fourth set, feeding off Lehman’s timidness on offense.
“Kailee Rank will hit the ball all the time,” said Dammeyer. “And Lilly Leininger can be aggressive at the net. But beyond that we try to tip the ball too much.”
Covington took full advantage, driving the ball through the heart of the Cavalier offense to quickly move out to a 17-9 lead. Lehman again closed to within four points, but this time some inconsistency on defense allowed to many balls to fall in their midst and Covington landed a 25-21 win to take the match.
For the sake of the momentum needed to win, Covington was the more capable team in creating it when they needed it.
“I think we just work together as a team,” said junior Addison Ventura. “We just play, I guess. Just together.”
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Teammate and senior Mazelle Reck credited playing for each other to create intensity every time Lehman closed a deficit.
“When we pick each other up it helps with our intensity. It helps us to keep going, that and keeping up the pressure by hitting the ball [aggressively].”
Covington’s aggressive hitting forced Lehman’s defense to scramble (Lilly Graham, above).
And clearly, Covington was the more aggressive in controlling momentum.
There are those around Lehman who long for a return to the Snipes years, the state titles, and a return to the kind of dominance not seen since 2010. That, of course, takes skill, some experience, and just as importantly…an attitude.
“We have some athletes,” smiled Dammeyer. “Our Kailee Rank is a stud, she’ll hit it from everywhere, and she leads the conference in kills by a long shot.
“But our inconsistency….” she adds with her next thought. “We’re young, and that inconsistency shows.”
Lehman has five seniors, but the bulk of their roster is made up by three juniors, four sophomores, and a freshman, Leininger, meaning Dammeyer and those who dream of the old days will have their patience tested.
“Hopefully we can bring it together,” said Dammeyer.
She left the gym smiling, her patience tried, but optimistic. No doubt, she’s invested in the process.
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