By Michael Lindsay
The Stone Memorial Lady Panthers stand alone atop District 7AA volleyball following Tuesday’s 3-1 victory over defending champion Livingston Academy.
“These seniors earned this moment and deserve it,” said Stone Memorial head coach Tori Permenter. “I’ve never beaten Livingston in a regular season match, so to do that against a great coach (Christie Jenkins) and great program feels really good.”
Hailee McDonald led Stone Memorial with 12 kills followed by Lucy Grothe with 11, Amy Gunderson with 9 and Kortney Headrick with 5.
Emma Slone posted 25 digs along with 13 by Mikenzie Morngrebe and 10 from Adyson Bennett. Setter Sophia Johns had 30 assists for the Lady Panthers.
It was Livingston Academy who controlled the early portion of Tuesday’s showdown as they jumped out to a 17-8 lead in the first set.
“I told the girls this is not our game,” Permenter said. “We acted like we didn’t want it at all. I feel like we came in a little cocky; we played them in a tournament and beat them twice, but they were all close sets. Livingston really took advantage of what we were giving them.”
Stone Memorial battled back to within 6 points (21-15) in the first set before the Lady Wildcats closed strong to win it 25-17.
Livingston again looked poised to run away with a set to start the second as they jumped out to a 6-1 lead. Stone Memorial answered with a 7-1 run to take their first lead of the match at 8-7. Neither team held more than a 2-point lead from that moment until Stone Memorial scored the final three points of the set to win it 25-22 and tie the contest 1-1.
The Lady Panthers kept their momentum rolling into the fourth set as they jumped out to a 13-5 lead.
“Without our defense and amazing setter Sophia Johns, our hitters don’t get the ball,” Permenter said. “When they did get it, they took care of it. We’ve got to keep that going.”
Livingston wouldn’t go away quietly as they pulled within 3 points, 19-16, before Stone Memorial closed the set on a 6-1 run to win 25-17 and go up 2-1.
A neck-and-neck start to the fourth set saw Stone Memorial take a 12-9 lead via a McDonald kill.
The Lady Panthers took control there as they stormed out to a 20-11 lead before winning the set 25-13 and the match 3-1.
“Getting that run in the very beginning (of the third) was big,” Permenter said. “A win is a win; we did a good job closing it out in that fourth set. The crowd played a big part in it and gave us a lot of energy.”
Stone Memorial improves to 7-0 in the regular season and 13-3 overall including tournament games. The Lady Panthers are 4-0 in District 7AA play at the midpoint of the season.
“We’re at the halfway point of the regular season and we’ve done great so far,” Permenter said. “But I told the girls to enjoy this tonight because tomorrow it’s over and done with. We still have to go through the district one more time. We’re the first seed right now, but a lot can change. We need to be playing our best volleyball in October.”
Both programs are set to take the rest of the week off. Stone Memorial is scheduled to travel to Meigs County on Monday while Livingston Academy hosts Watertown on Tuesday.
