PORTVILLE – If you can’t judge a book by its cover, then you
also can’t judge a volleyball game by the first two matches.
Salamanca (6-0) visited the previously undefeated Lady Panthers,
thanks to this year’s league realignment, and took them down 25-13,
25-10, 25-21.

“They’re not used to losing,” said Salamanca headman Tom Roof of
the team that also entered last year’s playoffs without a blemish.
“We came out playing well from the start,” something that Salamanca
has struggled with all year.

Katie Auge (20 kills, 12 service points) put two consecutive
kills down on Portville and tapped over the game-three winner to
keep the Lady Warriors perfect on the season against the
hard-hitting Lady Panthers.

After rushing out to a 10-3 lead in the first match en route to
the win, then blanking Portville 8-0 to start the second, the home
team woke up for the third set behind the play of freshman outside
hitter Jenny Olson (nine kills, one block) and the rest of the
Panthers.

“In that third game, we were tipping a lot,” said Roof about the
Lady Warriors’ use of ball placement. “Ash (Abrams) has great
eyesight. They don’t match up with us…their middle is not as strong
as our middle.”

The Lady Panthers, much like Salamanca in missing their dominant
starting middle player (Lindsay Olson), shored up a shaky passing
game from the first two matches and clawed back from an early
deficit to take a late lead at 17-16, and then expanded it to
20-16.

Abrams used a crosscourt kill to place consecutive balls in the
far corner to come within one point, and a blockade by Auge and
Cassie Crandall put Salamanca up for good at 22-21.

Abrams finished with 16 kills in the effort, while Brittany
Haines added 12 service points. For Portville, Demi Kauppinen added
16 assists, Alexis Jordan had seven kills and one block, and Brie
Starks added six kills.