Oakers stop Clippers in 4
Bennett, Erickson lead way in D-I defeat
CUMBERLAND — The Cumberland and Coventry volleyball teams always seem to meet early in the season, and the Clippers always seem to give the perennial powerhouse Oakers trouble.
But, the Clippers are still waiting for their first victory over Coventry.
Coventry senior outside hitter Lydia Clifford had eight kills, 12 digs and four blocks, while Miranda Medeiros had eight kills and three blocks to earn the Oakers a 25-16, 25-18, 2225, 25-19 victory over the improving Clippers Wednesday night at the Wellness Center.
“The first game was horrific between servereceive and not recovering tips,” Cumberland coach Ruth Plante said. “Our serving was much better today and we cut our service errors in half, but it still needs to improve. We didn’t serve-receive well enough, but I liked the way we blocked. We really blocked well.”
“It’s only our first game, so winning the first game is always good,” Coventry coach Jill Krebs said. “You have to get over the nerves and all of that. We have to pass the ball better than we did. Cumberland is a very scrappy team and kept a lot of balls alive, so we need to communicate a lot better. I don’t think we communicated at all.”
Cumberland (1-1 Division I) was coming off a victory over Classical, but Plante wasn’t pleased with the 20 service errors the Clippers committed in the victory. The serving improved Wednesday and so did the play of front-row standouts Emily Bennett and Stephanie Erickson.
Bennett had six kills on 10 attacks to go along with three blocks, while Erickson had 13 kills and was 13-for-14 from the service line.
“Stephanie definitely dominated the front row for both teams,” Plante said. “She really hit the ball well and was smart with the way she hit. Emily also played well. We have four hitters and they all need to do their job.”
Coventry (1-0) returns a number of talented players who pushed North Kingstown to five games in the Division I semifinals last season, but Krebs is working with a new setter along with a couple of new hitters. The Oakers never trailed in the opening game, but then they were pushed in the final three.
“We need our setter to take charge and be a quarterback,” Krebs said. “She is figuring that out. I’m optimistic because this is an experienced group and everyone has graduat- ed around them. All of the years they were supposed to be playing JV, they were playing varsity. They have the experience.”
After struggling in the opening game, the Clippers improved in the second game and actually held a 6-4 advantage after a Coventry passing error. The Clippers were only down 17-15 later in the game before the Oakers went on an 8-3 run to win.
Cumberland finally put a complete game together in the third. Erickson, setter Laurel Houle, Bennett and Emma Karten all played well in the front row.
“Laurel is getting better and she’s making better decisions,” Plante said of her first-year varsity setter. “She’s lacking the fast-pace experience, but she’s getting better. She needs to think about herself as more of an offensive weapon – dumping the ball and attacking because she can jump.”
Cumberland raced out to an 8-3 lead before Coventry battled back to grab a 12-11 edge. The Clippers responded with a 6-1 run, but Coventry tied the game at 22 on a Clifford ace. Cumberland answered by scoring the game’s final three points.
The Clippers, who host Division I-North rival Mount St. Charles Friday night, were never in the fourth game. Coventry built leads of 5-3, 10-6, 15-9 and 20-12 to cruise to the victory.
Clifford played well in the final game, as she delivered the penultimate point, but Krebs believes classmate Meagan Willett can be Coventry’s top offensive weapon when she receives in-system sets.
“Lydia should be our best hitter, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Meagan is at the same level if we can get our setter to get the ball out to her,” Krebs said. “When Meagan hits the ball, she kills it. The problem was she only had three good sets tonight.”
Coventry hosts Cranston West Friday night before returning to the Blackstone Valley Monday night to face unbeaten Mount St. Charles.