GILMAN VOLLEYBALL - Columbus is too much again; Pirates sweep Greenwood
GILMAN VOLLEYBALL
The Gilman Pirates weren’t able to finish what they started in the first two sets and weren’t able to complete a third game comeback while getting swept 3-0 Tuesday by Eastern Cloverbelt Conference volleyball leader Columbus Catholic.
The Dons erased Gilman’s early leads with late-game surges in the first two sets and then jumped out to an insurmountable 18-9 lead in game three to put a damper on Gilman’s Senior Night festivities.
Columbus Catholic looked vulnerable early in the fall, but now the Dons once again sit at 6-0 in the Eastern Cloverbelt standings, assured of at least a share of their eighth straight league title. They host Loyal tonight, Thursday, in a big matchup to close the conference season. At 5-1, the Greyhounds will look to create a tie atop the final standings.
Columbus Catholic has not lost a conference match since 2019, the year they split the league title with Gilman.
Tonight, 3-3 Gilman wraps up league play at Colby, the other team who still is fighting for a championship share. The 5-1 Hornets are hoping to beat the Pirates and hoping Loyal wins at Marshfield to create a three-way tie atop the standings.
In game one Tuesday, Gilman was able to slow down Columbus Catholic’s varied offensive attack, getting blocks from Abby Chaplinski, Allison Olynick and Jaylyn Orth. Chaplinski’s back row attack and her ace gave the Pirates an early 10-7 lead. But the Dons turned to 5-10 middle Aubrey Waldhauser to turn the tide and she did just that, collecting two spike kills, a tip and two aces to push her team into a 16-14 lead. Jaylen Copenhaver got a touch and Orth got a kill to give Gilman a 17-16 edge, but the Dons got three aces from Shelby Spata in a 9-1 surge that won the set for them 25-18.
Claire Drier sparked another strong start for Gilman in game two with a drive off a blocker, a kill, a win at the net with two Dons blockers and an ace as the Pirates went up 9-4. But Columbus Catholic caught Gilman quickly, taking a 12-11 lead. Orth’s kill tied it, but a back row kill by Gracie Wilczek, a conventional kill from Spata, a crosscourt kill by Chayse Blenker and a successful roll shot from Wilczek put the Dons up 16-13, then the lead hit 20-14. Gilman got within 22-19 on an Olynick ace and 23-20 on an Orth kill. Orth blocked Blenker and a hitting error pulled the Pirates within 23-22, but Waldhauser got a crucial kill and Blenker tooled a Gilman block to end the set at 2522.
With some wind taken out of their sails, it took too long for Gilman to get it back in game three, though the Pirates did make a late run, getting as close as 21-16 before the Dons finished off the match at 25-18.
Gilman will host a Cloverbelt Conference crossover match on Tuesday before going into WIAA Division 5 regional play on Oct. 22.
Gilman 3, Greenwood 0
The Pirates had no trouble with lastplace Greenwood in Thurday’s Dig Pink night, quickly taking care of the visiting Indians 25-5, 25-7, 25-9 for their third conference win of the fall.
Greenwood scored the first two points of the match and that was the only time in the brief match where Gilman trailed.
Chaplinski served the Pirates to a 7-2 lead in the first set, Aubrey Steinbach’s serving run included an ace and pushed the lead to 18-4 and Orth finished off the set with a couple of kills, the second of which was assisted by Kenlyn Kroeplin.
Chaplinski set the tone in game two with aces for the first two points. Olynick, Jaylen Copenhaver and Aubrey Mann added kills in the 6-0 start. Kroeplin had an ace in a run that made it 17-4 and Chaplinski had two more aces while Kylee Copenhaver had two more kills to finish off the set.
The third set was 6-4 when Kroeplin served the Pirates to another commanding lead. She had five aces in the 14-point run that made it 20-4. Drier and Orth added two kills apiece. Chaplinski got to swing from the left side and had a couple of kills, while Kayleigh James added an ace to help finish things off.
