Red Knights sweep Madonna on senior night

TORONTO -- As a special regular season comes to a close for the Toronto volleyball team, it was only fitting its seniors led the way for a special performance on senior night.

The Red Knights' six seniors each made key contributions on the night they were recognized prior to the match to lead the way in a sweep of visiting Madonna inside the George J. Kunzler Gymnasium, keeping Toronto unbeaten at 19-0.

"That's the kind of senior night you want for a group like this," Toronto head coach Lori Lynn Jackson said. "It's nice because all six of our seniors are in the starting line up, and they all finished the game. They were all on the court together for the game point. It's a super special night for those young ladies.

"I wouldn't have had senior night go any other way."

The Red Knights, who are ranked No. 12 in the latest Ohio High School Volleyball Coaches Association Poll, won by scores of 25-11, 25-9 and 25-13. Especially in the first and third sets, the Dons were able to hang around early, but the Red Knights pulled away with big runs to close each of the three out.

"It's been the season with a capital T-H-E," Jackson said.

The seniors had a lot to do with those runs, as Hannah Dobbs tallied 17 kills, three aces and nine digs, Andrea Reeves recorded 34 assists, two aces and nine digs, Ashton Thomas racked up nine kills and five aces, Callie Anderson had 11 kills and three digs, Michelle Anderson recorded 14 digs, three assists and an ace and Riley Fisher finished with three digs and an ace.

"They've been a part of this program since they were freshmen, most of them have been part of the varsity team since they were freshmen," Jackson said. "They're definitely a very special group."

Madonna coach Mike Orecchio knew his Blue Dons (5-11) were in for a challenge, and hopes the experience against a team like the Red Knights makes them stronger down the stretch run.

"That's a buzzsaw," he said of Toronto. "(Dobbs) is a D1 player. We had a couple good blocks, we did some good things, but we knew what we were up against. They're just a very good team, they're undefeated for a reason.

"Our next six games are against Class A teams, we feel pretty good about our chances to compete in those games."

For the Dons, Mia Pietranton recorded three kills, three assists and three digs, Rylee Birkhimer tallied five digs, an ace, an assist, a kill and a block, Jules Thomshak had two blocks and a kill, Chloe Orecchio had six digs and two assists and Gigi Orecchio had six digs and a kill.

UP NEXT

Madonna: Competes in a tri against Hundred and South Harrison on Tuesday to start a busy week.

Toronto: Hosts Buckeye Local tonight for its 10th annual Breast Cancer Awareness night match, which includes a fundraiser for the Teramana Cancer Center. It is also the final regular season match for the Red Knights before the OVAC and OHSAA tournaments.