GILMAN VOLLEYBALL - Drier goes on a tear in win over O-W; Prentice wins in four

GILMAN VOLLEYBALL

The Gilman Pirates didn’t win game two of their Tuesday volleyball match with Owen-Withee, but the momentum certainly tipped in their favor by the end of the set and carried them to a 3-1 Eastern Cloverbelt Conference win over the visiting Blackhawks.

After winning a back-and-forth first set 29-27, Gilman fell behind 20-9 in set two. Claire Drier got a kill, scored on a backrow attack and didn’t quit firing from there on her way to a 12-ace, 12-kill night that propelled the Pirates to a 2-0 mark early in the ECC season.

Drier rattled off her first five aces to pull Gilman within 20-17 in that second game. The Pirates actually took a 22-21 lead when Jaylyn Orth found the sideline for a kill, but they couldn’t quite finish it off, falling 25-23 to even the match at a set apiece.

But they played solidly in all phases after that.

Kayleigh James sparked a Gilman run early in game three with a diving dig that carried over the net and into an open corner for a 6-3 lead. Jaylen Copenhaver served an ace and then Drier started burying kills and added two aces to help Gilman open up a 17-8 lead. The Pirates took the set 25-15.

Drier fired off two big kills and then four straight aces late in game four, which Gilman won 25-11.

Drier also tied Orth for the team lead with four blocks in the win. Copenhaver had her second straight strong outing with increased time in the front row, collecting six kills. Orth had five, while Allison Olynick and Aubrey Mann had four each. Copenhaver had three blocks and Addy Vick had two.

Abby Chaplinski had 30 set assists and an ace. James led the defense with 23 digs, while Chaplinski had 19, Drier and Kenlyn Kroeplin had 16 each and Copenhaver had 12.

Gilman, now 9-7 overall, dives deep