ANSONIA – The Ansonia Lady Tigers dropped a 3-0 non-conference volleyball match to the visiting Fort Recovery Indians on the Tigers’ home court.
“I told the girls this is such an awesome game for us to prepare for the tournament and fix those things we have been struggling with,” said Ansonia coach Lexi Custenborder. “I think they did just that.”
“I am proud of their performance,” Custenborder added. “They made a lot of adjustments, which in the past was something we would have struggled with.”
The Lady Indians jumped out to a 5-13 first-set lead, bringing a timeout from the Ansonia bench. A second Lady Tigers timeout, with the score standing at 7-20, had the teams playing even at 5-5 to close out the opening set, resulting in a 25-12 win for Fort Recovery
“I thought the first set was a wakeup call, and then the next two, I felt like we did step it up and play to their speed and their level,” Coach Custenborder said. “We needed to clean up a few mistakes, and I think that the scores could have looked different.”
Ansonia took an early 3-0 lead in set No. 2 and saw the teams play to 5-5, 7-7, 8-8 ties, and the Lady Tigers trailed by a single point at 13-14 before the visitors closed out the set with a win to go up 2-0.
The Lady Tigers kept it close in the third, trailing 8-10 and 13-16 before Fort Recovery pulled away for a 25-16 win.
“My outsides, Camryn Winner and Olivia Schmitmeyer did a great job,” Coach Custenborder noted. “I told them to go line and they were able to do that. My middle, Autumn Best, and setter Charlotte Barga were difference makers out there. When they were on the court, we had energy and we were making great choices.”
