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Lucky Number 7: Nwanebu dominant in Lovejoy sweep of Allen
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
LUCAS - Lovejoy's Ebony Nwanebu is one of the best senior volleyball players in the country.
Anyone uncertain as to why that is got a firsthand view Tuesday night.
Nwanebu was a relentless force during her front-line rotations, continually putting up blocks and dropping kills, including the final two points, during Lovejoy's victory over Allen (25-15, 25-23, 25-12).
Any shoulder fatigue came from continual kills, of which there were plenty Tuesday.
That type of activity is to be anticipated when schools that are only four miles apart face off.
"Yeah, Allen is definitely a big rival," Nwanebu said.
Tuesday's win improved Lovejoy's all-time record to 3-1 against Allen with the Lady Eagles taking the first matchup in 2009 and the Lady Leopards winning the next three.
"I think the juices always flow a little against the cross-town rival," Mitchell said.
A heightened level of excitement may explain the sloppy first set.
Allen tied the score multiple times in the early stages with blocks from sophomore Sheridan Ralston and a kill by sophomore Sydney Joseph, but Lovejoy pulled away with a 9-3 run midway through the set thanks to blocks from freshman Sarah Langs and kills by Nwanebu. With a 20-14 advantage in hand, the Lady Leopards continued to feed the ball to Nwanebu and finished the set, 25-15, when the Lady Eagles touched the net while Lovejoy senior Mallorie Puckett was going for a kill.
Allen would make a stand in Game 2.
"I think our ball control was kind of out the window in Game 1," said Kelley Gregoriew, Allen head coach, "but we came out much more consistent and determined in Game 2."
Back-to-back aces from Allen junior Hannah Walsh tied the set at 6-6 and Allen took leads at 8-7, 10-8 and 11-10 with kills from Atwood, sophomore Kaitlyn Blake and junior Camryn Freiberg.
While Allen's offense thrived, its defense stepped up against Nwanebu.
"I thought we were able to slow [Nwanebu] at times, especially in Game 2, and got some touches on the block," Gregoriew said.
That was the case with Ralston and Blake frequently supplying the block, but Lovejoy upped its versatility in Game 2, taking a 14-13 lead following a big kill by senior Shannon Connell and an ace from senior Brooke Ray. The game stayed within two points the rest of the way with Allen eventually knotting the score at 23-23. The Lady Leopards took the next two points though, winning the set 25-23, on a kill by junior Katelyn McKenzie and a dig by senior Bailey Martin that led to another net violation.
"Katelyn has really started to produce for us," Mitchell said. "She is good on the block and offensively she really sides out well."
McKenzie's block was working early in Game 3, then again pretty much everything was for Lovejoy as the team added four kills from Nwanebu and two aces by junior Hannah Drees to amass a 13-1 advantage.
"We knew after that second set we really had to pick it up," Nwanebu said. "We got our energy up in the third, started getting the momentum going and the hitters were getting really good sets."
Allen had trouble responding.
"We struggled with ball control in that third game," Gregoriew said, "and that really slows our offense down."
The Lady Eagles didn't get within nine points the rest of the way with a kill by Puckett and pair of spikes from Nwanebu wrapping up the game, 25-12, and sweep.
Allen won't take the court for another week as it hosts Flower Mound at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday to kick off a stretch of non-district matches that includes Coppell and Hebron before the 10-5A opener Sept. 21 against Plano East.
"Since we are in a six-team district we still have some time until we get going," Gregoriew said. "So I wanted to give the girls a bye Friday to break up the monotony a bit; we will go through film and do some team bonding so we can take a bit of a mental and physical break."
The Lady Leopards don't have that luxury.
Lovejoy begins District 13-4A at 5:30 p.m. Friday on the road versus Sherman.
"We've been playing well enough to win," Mitchell said, "but I think we have hit a bit of a wall in terms of being succinct and playing with discipline, so hopefully with more practice time we can get that going again to start district."
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