The Melrose Lady Raiders took a major step toward recapturing Middlesex League dominance with a thrilling five game victory at the Reading Fieldhouse. The victory kept Melrose undefeated at 4-0 (3-0 Middlesex League) and vaulted the volleyballers into undisputed first place.
Senior co-captain Gina Ciccone returned from a lower body injury to come off the bench to help Melrose garner the victory. In addition to Gina's efforts, senior co-captain Lauren Howe also showed steadiness in the back row against the Rocket attack.
Last year Reading took both contests, but with the loss of North Shore League Player of the Year Meredith Gent to graduation and a new coach, Reading faced some rebuilding. Melrose overcame a 21-19 deficit in game 1, rallying to win 25-21. Nicole Glavin had a pair of key service points to close out the game.
The Lady Rockets came back strongly to win games 2 and 3, as Reading had superior height and capitalized on slightly better serving than Melrose.
Facing elimination in Game 4, Melrose again rallied from a deficit to pull out the tiebreaker 25-22 sending the match into a decisive fifth game. Hannah Brickley dominated the fourth frame, unofficially with seven kills in the comeback effort.
Reading jumped out to a 9-8 lead in the final game, before Melrose assumed control with a four point run. The teams traded additional points before the visitors took it home 15-12 in the fifth.
Coach Scott Celli surely was excited about the resilience of his team, that came from behind in each of the victorious games. Although pleased with the overall performance, he will look for more consistent service and even more consistency from both the offensive attack and serve-receive.
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