Dominant is an understatement when it comes to the Independence volleyball team.
The Blue Devils swept Orange on Thursday to improve to 7-0 overall and 5-0 in the Chagrin Valley Conference Chagrin Division. During that stretch, the Blue Devils haven’t lost a set as they prepare for an upcoming showdown with Gilmour Academy, the 2015 Division III state champion and 2016 Final Four participant.
“We are looking forward to a couple of big weeks of play and are ready to see what we can handle,” said Independence coach Megan Osysko. “We had two good conference wins this week and our serving has been very good the last few matches.”
Independence recorded 19 aces in beating Orange 25-8, 25-14 and 25-13.
Maura Collins led the Blue Devils with seven aces, Grace Smotek recorded five, Katie May had four and Maddy Bilinovic finished with three.
Collins recorded 13 of the Blue Devils’ 36 kills. Smotek recorded seven kills and Lexi Prokopius had five.
“Having multiple threats in the front row is extremely beneficial,” Collins said. “No team is going to go where we want to go with only one big attacker. Our spread of the hitters across the net will give our opponent some trouble trying to stop our offense. That’s definitely something that we haven’t had in years past.”
Bilinovic led Independence with 14 digs and May recorded a team-high 27 assists.
“We are always focused during the match regardless of what the score is or who’s on the other side,” Collins said. “The confidence and energy we have right now helps us keep the flow of our play. We know that the work we put in now will benefit us later.”
By later, Collins is referring to the postseason and the Blue Devils have their sights set on playing at the Nutter Center in Dayton this November.
“Bringing everyone back this season has really benefitted the chemistry of this team,” Collins said. “We’re going to start seeing things click even more than they are now. As a team, we set goals in the first week of the season and work every day toward those and we have our sights set on making history for Independence volleyball.”
The Blue Devils travel to Geneva on Tuesday then host Gilmour on Wednesday.
