Red Devils spike Trojans
STRATFORD — The Stratford girls volleyball team has made a statement this season that it is a force to be reckoned with on the court.
The Red Devils, who were 18-2 last year in the regular season, have nearly duplicated that mark with a 16-3 record following a convincing 3-0 victory over SWC foe Weston (25-22, 25-21, 25-17) in a non-league encounter on Wednesday night at Needham Memorial Gym.
“This year to repeat it and be up there, I just can’t say enough about these girls,” Stratford’s veteran head coach Lisa Buccieri said. “They’re a great group, they’re working hard and it’s great to see.”
The serving of Jackie DeCrescenzo set the tone right off the bat for the Red Devils in the first. She rattled off nine straight service points to grab a 9-0 lead and finished with 24 service points.
It was that kind of night for the Trojans (12-8), who had a hard time dealing with the serving of Stratford and were their own worst enemy at times by making their fair share of mistakes along the way.
“No. 11 (DeCrescenzo), she served us off the court,” said Weston head coach Mackenzie Robens, whose team only had the lead three times during the match. “I feel like we started each set in a hole and when you do that, it’s tough. They (Stratford) are scrappy and we didn’t play with fire tonight. We made mental mistakes, mistakes that shouldn’t be happening at this time of the season.”
Weston beat Stratford 3-1 earlier this month so the Red Devils were amped up
to play better against the Trojans.
“The last time we played them we didn’t play as a team,” Stratford senior tri-captain Julia Torreso said. “Today we really pulled it together and played as a team.”
PLAYER OF THE MATCH
Jackie DeCrescenzo, Stratford. The senior tricaptain and setter/outside hitter was an all-around weapon for the Red Devils and gave Weston fits with 24 service points, five aces, two kills, 13 digs and eight assists.
UNSUNG HERO
Samm Carbone, Stratford. The senior tri-captain and middle hitter was solid all-around with seven points, seven kills, two digs and four blocks.
SWC PLAYOFFS
Weston will be the No. 5 seed in the tournament and will play Masuk on Monday while Stratford will be the No. 3 seed and host Brookfield in the quarterfinals. BREAST CANCER AWARENESS FUNDRAISER
Stratford donned pink jerseys and raised money for the Brenda LaConte Memorial Scholarship fund. LaConte, who passed away in 2014, was a standout athlete at Bunnell and Buccieri coached her niece at Stratford. All of the proceeds from the night’s raffle and admission will go to breast cancer awareness and prevention. QUOTABLE
“We definitely came ready to play today and worked hard in practice trying to get around the tall girl (Kate Anderson),” Buccieri said. “All the girls contributed and they wanted it.”
“I have a ritual and I tell myself I can do it,” DeCrescenzo said of her success serving.