By SPENCER BATES
ALLEGANY — The Allegany-Limestone girls volleyball team, winners of each of its five matches of the new season, tasted defeat for the first time at the hands of still-unbeaten Cattaraugus-Little Valley.
Entering the match, the Gators had dropped just one set over the course of its five consecutive victories. Meanwhile, the Timberwolves had completed sweeps in each of their first five wins.
Unfortunately for A-L, a three-set, 18-25, 18-25, 23-25 defeat saw its hot streak hit a roadblock while its guests’ clean streak continued.
“(CLV) were hitting well, they were blocking well, they almost picked up on all of our weaknesses,” A-L coach Tara Bottone said. “They were blocking our best outside hitters. We weren’t getting our blocks up and we struggled with our passing. … A couple of times at the end (of sets) we came in, we got some good things going, but it just wasn’t enough. They have two big hitters, and they were phenomenal.”
On paper, a 3-0 defeat tells a story of a lopsided affair. The contrary could not be more true. Through the three sets, the Gators were never out of contention. The Timberwolves may have held an advantage for the majority of each set, but never out of striking distance were the hosts.
That level of determination to fight, exemplified in their near-comeback in the third set, is not a recent development according to Bottone. This is a group of athletes who have been playing together for some time, and she will never count them out of any set or match.
“They’ve been playing together since they were 12, they never give up,” Bottone said. “They want it. They want to have a big year. I have a lot of seniors, and they know this is it. They got to go big or go home. They always like to rally back and they support each other. They never, ever blame each other. They make a mistake, they call it, they own it, and they support each other. I think that really helps them get over those obstacles … that’s what makes them so special.”
Allegany-Limestone’s Makenzie Goldsmith (5) prepares to make a serve against Cattaraugus-Little Valley. (Spencer Bates)
Come the end of the match Summer Rhow led A-L with seven digs and three kills. Alongside her, Serena Frederick had eight kills and Julia DeRose finished with 16 assists.
But as much as a positive the camaraderie within the team is, Bottone also knows that her team cannot just settle for defeats if or when they do come. With the parity that exists amongst the teams her Gators will play this season, she knows matches will not get any easier from here on out.
“We have to go toe-to-toe with teams like Portville and Falconer, so our league record has to be almost undefeated (to help) where we fall in the playoffs. All of our teams, Catt. Little-Valley, Falconer, even Gowanda, we’re all so close that it’s going to be like this the whole season.”
However, in order to remain at a competitive level, there needs to be an understanding that things will have to change. This is the message Bottone hoped her players took away from the loss.
She noted that there was a sense of hesitancy in the lead-up to the match around altering their strategy. Now after tasting defeat, she wants her players to exhibit more flexibility.
“They have to just make some adjustments,” Bottone said. “We had practice yesterday, we talked about how we may need to change some little things, because we knew that (CLV) was going to change things, and we were a little hesitant. … I think now they know that we got to change things a little bit and be flexible.”
Allegany-Limestone will have the chance to get back into the win column in its next match, set for 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 19 at home against Jamestown.
