YARMOUTH — Like a chef checking the cupboard for a new ingredient to improve a recipe, Scarborough High volleyball coach Jon Roberts looked down his fully stocked bench for someone who could spice things up Tuesday night after Yarmouth kept the Class A match alive with an emphatic win in the third game.
Enter outside hitter Marissa Edwards. Little used in the first three games, Edwards put down four kills with authority as Scarborough finished off a competitive 25-14, 25-21, 16-25, 25-17 win.
“She was a big spark,” Roberts said. “I don’t know how many kills she had but she came up with big swings at key times and got us to be aggressive again.”
Scarborough (5-1), the defending Class A champion, won its fifth straight match after being shut out in its opener by Greely. Yarmouth (5-1) had not lost a game in five previous matches.
In addition to the kills, Edwards had another batch of hard spikes that kept Yarmouth’s tough-to-penetrate back row on the defensive.
“Our back row is as good as anybody’s in the league,” Yarmouth Coach Jim Senecal said. “We were able to extend the rallies but we just didn’t have enough. When a team is more aggressive than you, it becomes this power game, free-ball back, kind of thing and you’re eventually going to lose that. You have to be the aggressor.”
At times Yarmouth was the forceful team, especially when it was able to get a set to outside hitter Alison Clark, who finished with a match-high 18 kills.
Clark isn’t as tall as multiple Scarborough middle hitters who were throwing two-person blocks in her way. Instead she used what Senecal called “a textbook approach” to generate quick, sharp hits that beat the block cleanly or were struck with enough force to send the ball caroming out of bounds for a Clipper point.
In the third game, Clark was at her best, putting down four straight kills to close out the game. Those points were set up in part by the low, top-spin serves from Dominique Moran.
Moran entered when Senecal was looking for a boost because of her serve, then helped run the offense as the setter.
Scarborough deployed three senior setters: starter Libby Chadbourne, Caroline Goodwin and Lilly Young. All three played in the fourth game.
“I have three good setters,” Roberts said. “Like today, one kid was cool and calm in one game and helped the other one out, and in the fourth game the other one was struggling and the other one came in and helped her out. It’s nice to be able to do that.”
Scarborough was also able to spread its attack. Kacey Foerster and middle hitter Jordyn Cowan led the effort with eight kills. Foerster took over in the second game, which Yarmouth at one point led 13-6. She had four kills, steady passing and one belly-sliding game-point dig during the Red Storm’s game-ending 19-8 run.
“When we need someone to step in, they step in and do it with heart,” Foerster said. “It’s really great to have such a deep bench and everybody trusts everyone. We’re like a big family.”
Edwards finished with five kills. Asia Mattress, a promising middle hitter, combined with Cowan to dominate the first game and finished with five kills. Natalie Simonton had three kills and a team-high three blocks.
For Yarmouth, outside hitter Rachel Chille had eight kills.
“Our offense is no secret. We work our two outside (hitters) as much we possibly can and when those kids are on they’re pretty unstoppable, but that’s a hard chore to do for a long match,” Senecal said. “They both did a fantastic job.”
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