Trumbull High’s girls volleyball team defeated visiting St Joseph 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-15) on Thursday afternoon.
With the win, the Eagles improved to 4-2 overall (2-2 in the FCIAC) and the Cadets fell to 3-4 (2-2).
The Eagles were in command throughout the match — the second of the season between the town and conference rivals. Having beaten St Joe’s in four games the first time around, the Eagles were pleased with earning the sweep in the rematch.
“We were a lot better today. We kept our energy up, we played hard,” said Trumbull captain Liv Borski, who had 17 kills and three aces. “Hitting and blocking were keys to the win. Our serve-receive was awesome.”
Trumbull’s Imani Bell had six kills, two blocks, five digs, 12 service points and a trio of aces; Sara Carlson had 15 digs and 11 service points; and setter Ally Nielsen compiled 32 assists and five digs in the win.
St. Joe’s was led by Christina Crocco with nine kills and four blocks; Megan Robertson with 19 assists and an ace; and Elena Ball with seven kills.
Game two was even at 10, before Trumbull took the lead for good when Katie Schels earned a point on a kill and Bell followed with consecutive aces as part of a 5-0 run.
St Joe’s fell behind 21-13, but reeled off four straight points capped by a Bridget Fatse kill but got no closer.
In game three, the Eagles went on a roll to build a 12-2 lead behind their strong service game.
“They played as a team and they played with confidence,” Trumbull coach Tamara DeBerry said. “We haven’t been playing aggressively and we did today. We were everywhere on defense. Carlson at libero and Becca Lubbert in the back row played very well.”
Another part of the game in which the Eagles did well was in the service game. They made only four service errors in the match, about a third or half what they had been averaging.
DeBerry noted that St Joe’s has some height and strong defensive play and was impressed with how her team maintained control throughout the match.
Cadet coach Jeff Babineau said his team is young and needs to get more consistent to have success. “In spots we had tremendous effort and in spots we let the nerves come out and take over, and I think that hurt us,” said Babineau, whose roster is made up primarily of underclassmen.