PERRY—Don’t count out the Perry Pirates this season.
Trailing visiting North 2-0 in a nonconference match on Wednesday, the Pirates rallied to win the final three sets and the match, 3-2.
“The girls got refocused and just took over the whole game,” Perry coach Mike Fitzgerald said. “They did their jobs and I’m very proud of them. That was outstanding. You can’t ask for anything else.”
North won the first two sets, 25-18 and 25-20.
Perry then took control in the third set by building a 10-point lead. The Rangers chipped away at the Perry lead but the Pirates won the set and fought off the sweep with a 25-20 win.
Sophomore Sammie DiBease found her groove in the fourth set and dominated the net to help the Pirates even up the match at 2-2 with a 27-25 win.
Perry used the momentum to score the first five points of the decisive fifth set and held on for a 15-11 win.
“She’s a transfer from Lake Catholic and I can’t be happier to have her, obviously. She’s a power hitter and one of our top players,” Fitzgerald said of DiBease. “They all did a phenomenal job. Even my bench players were staying focused and cheering to keep everybody in the game.”
Perry setters Emily Chaplin and Maddie Tharp struggled to hit their mark in the early goings but settled in after the second set to help the Pirates make their move.
Tharp, a sophomore, earned the starting job in the preseason and quickly proved she can handle the pressure.
“She showed she can do it,” Fitzgerald said. “She had some focus issues in the beginning but she brought it in and did her job.”
Perry (1-0) travels to Chardon on Friday.
