Commodores’ postseason run comes to an end

By JASON BLACK

MVI Sports

During the regular season, the Waynesburg volleyball team used two wins against rival Frazier to earn a section championship.

On Monday night, the Raiders used a victory over the Commodores to punch their ticket into the WPIAL Class 2A semifinals.

Fifth-seeded Waynesburg (13-2) played a strong match from start to finish and was able to complete a three-game sweep of 13th-seeded Frazier, 25-14, 25-15, 25-19 in the WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinals at Waynesburg Central High School.

“When a team beats you three times in one season, they are the better team,” Frazier coach Mandy Hartman said. “The second time we played them (a 3-2 Waynesburg victory), I think we probably overachieved. They have a lot of weapons, and we have two girls that we go to. They are the best team we have played.”

Frazier (11-6) was no match in the first set, as the Raiders countered the Commodores’ big swings with some big blocks at the net. Waynesburg raced out to a 4-0 lead and never trailed. An ace by Morgan Stephenson gave the Raiders a 12-5 lead before Riley Bowers also served an ace to extend the Waynesburg lead to 15-10.

Jensyn Hartman was able to land a kill to pull the Commodores to within 20-12, but Emma Robinson countered with a cross-court kill for Waynesburg to help complete the first-set win.

The second set started well for the Commodores, as Frazier was able to gain an early lead when Kaeyln Shaporka was able to smack a kill for a 10-9 Frazier edge.

To read the rest of the story, please see a copy of Tuesday’s Mon Valley Independent, call 724-314-0035 to subscribe or subscribe to our online edition at http://monvalleyindependent.com.