Weston ended Melrose's dreams of a sectional title two years ago. Melrose returned the favor tonight, hosting Weston's elimination 25-19, 25-20, and 25-20.
Melrose faced a tough opponent in the first round and emerged victorious despite a terrific performance from the Wildcats' big gun, Athena Ardila. It wasn't easy.
The opening set saw the teams play to a standstill, except for a service error advantage in favor of Melrose, 7-1. The set was tied at 1, 2, 3, and 7, before a Melrose run brought the edge to 13-7. From there, Weston never got closer than five, despite getting seven kills from Ardila. Unofficially, captains Cat Torpey and Victoria Crovo each had a trio of kills.
The back row of captain Kaitlyn MacInness, Crovo, Jill Mercer, Julia Symonds, and Katie Donovan kept the damage to a minimum.
The second set saw more back-and-forth play, with ties at 8, 11, 12, 13, and 14 before Melrose went on a 6-1 edge...highlighted by a consecutive pair of acrobatic Lily Fitzgerald kills at the net. The "V-Rex" got in full gear with five kills. From 20-15, Weston got close at 22-20, but Melrose answered with kills from Saoirse Connolly and Lily to close out the Cats.
Good teams never quit and Weston is solid. The third set saw ties at 1 through 4 and 6 through 11. The teams again were knotted at 13 through 16 before Weston went up 18-16 as Ardila went wild. But a Scott Celli timeout brought renewed energy and confidence and Melrose scored five straight points only to see the Cats get near at 21-20. But Melrose, behind a service run by Jill Mercer and a key strong side kill by Julia Symonds closed out the match. Victoria had three kills, Cat and Lily a pair, and Saoirse and Lydia Lombardo put additional icing on the kick as Melrose survived and advanced.
Melrose faces Winchester Monday at 6 PM in a rematch of Middlesex League co-champions at Winchester.
*Box score courtesy of Dick Collis.
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