NAVARRE – If one play summarized the entire volleyball match Tuesday between Crestview and Navarre, then it was midway through the third set with the Bulldogs leading 10-5.
Each time a Navarre player rose for a kill attempt, Crestview was there to block it back.
Navarre’s attacks weren’t necessarily subpar, but Crestview’s arms effectively raised the net in a much-needed four-set victory, the first for visiting Crestview in District 1-7A play.
“We block well,” Crestview coach Kathy Combest said. “We do goofy things and passing mistakes. We hit well, but we can’t score points for them.”
Crestview (11-6, 1-3) had nearly triple the blocks as Navarre (6-8, 2-4) with 28 blocks from the Bulldogs – 12 alone from Cailey Ness and eight from Molly Kitchen – to the Raiders’ 10. After the teams split the first two sets – Crestview winning the opener 25-19 but Navarre responding 25-21 – the Bulldogs stretched their third-set lead to 11-5 with Kitchen’s two blocks sandwiching Ness’ one.
When a team’s net defense is at Crestview’s level Tuesday, the opponent has no choice but to attempt more tips and less hard hits.
“Blocking is such a big part of the game,” Crestview player Christa Johnson said. “When you’re able to stop someone from pounding the ball on you, then the only thing they have left is a tip. So whenever they are tipping and we’re covering for that on the back row, it makes it easier on us.”
Crestview’s third-set lead widened to 15-5, but Navarre battled back to a 19-19 draw with seven kills and one ace from Shelby Freese, who had a team-high 14 kills. The Bulldogs once again grabbed command, 24-20, with a block apiece from Kitchen and Ness, and finished the set 25-23 with one of Kitchen’s six kills. She also had 13 assists.
“I’m trying to find who will help us out,” Navarre coach Amy Walls said. “I may need to make some changes, but (when another team blocks well), it slows our offense down. I’m trying to find players who will do likewise for our defense. We need big blocks at the net. It wasn’t the outcome we wanted but there were some bright spots.”
In the fourth set, the match was tied 17-17 before Crestview won eight of the next nine points.
In the first set, Crestview opened a 23-14 lead using one of Marisa Roger’s 19 assists to one of Kierra Potts’ 15 kills. In the second set, Navarre led 15-8 with one of Cayla Frazetta’s six kills. She also had 11 digs, and Nyasha Frank added 12 assists.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Bulldogs get first district win