Story by Scott Dubois–
Oak Hill defeated Northfield 3-1 with scores of 25-21, 25-21, 19-25 and 25-22 in their opening match of the Class 2A volleyball sectional at Southwood High school Thursday night.
The lady Norsemen jumped ahead early in a game one at 5-3 before the Golden Eagles quickly evened the score at 6-6. The rest of the set was very tightly contested with neither team gaining more than a two point advantage and the two teams were still deadlocked 17. At this point Oak Hill finally gained control scoring eight of the last 12 points to grab the 25-21 win, Seniors Christina Webb and Toni Lautzenheiser led Oak Hill with three kills each and had assistance from sophomores Ajua Smith and Kristin Dubois at the net.
Northfield began the second set with a 3-0 advantage, but the Eagles responded with a 9-1 run to take their biggest lead of the game at 9-4. In what turned into a back and forth tussle, the Norse used a 11-6 run of their own to knot the score at 15. Another 3-1 spurt put Northfield ahead by two at 18-16, but just like the first game Oak Hill closed on a 9-3 run in route to another 25-21 triumph.
The third game was very similar to the previous two sets and it was a close back and forth struggle. Again Northfield would take the early 6-3 lead and Oak Hill would fight back for their own 10-8 edge .The Norsemen continued the seesaw action with an 8-0 run to pull ahead 16-10. The Eagles were not done using a surge to even the match again at 18. At the end of this set Northfield would not be denied behind the solid play of sophomore Ava Smith won the game on a 8-1 run.
The fourth and decisive set of the match was a carbon copy of the other games with Oak Hill surging to the 3-0 lead before Northfield responded to go ahead at 6-5. The rest of the set was a dramatic tight affair with multiple ties at 12, 15, 18, and 20. The Golden Eagles they gained final control on a 5-2 run for an exciting and emotional victory, avenging a loss during the season on 10/12/15.
Northfield concludes their season with a 14-17 record. Oak Hill improves their record to 12-18 and advances to the sectional semi-final against Southwood at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.
