In its second league game of the week, Clarkston was hoping to race another game ahead in the Oakland Activities Association. Instead, Rochester Adams put Senior Night to use with their fast-paced offense, dropping the Wolves 3-1 at Rochester on Feb. 1.
Two seniors, Chelsea Rutledge, an outside hitter for the Highlanders, and Lauren Wisniewski, a middle hitter, led the team to victory.
‘The two of them hit very consistent today and they just played fantastic volleyball,? Adams coach Ben Kaszeta said.
Rutledge finished with 10 kills and 10 digs while Wisniewski had four kills and two blocks.
The Highlanders (16-7-1) hurry-up offense helped them win the match after losing the first game to the Wolves (14-11-2).
‘We played fast and we played with good confidence,? Kaszeta said.
‘We ran the fast offense and put the pressure on the other team to make their mistakes,? he added.
The Wolves are now 4-5 in the OAA and the Highlanders evened their conference mark at 4-4.
The Highlanders were also aided by the serving of libero Kailey Dillon, who came up with crucial service points.
‘She was very aggressive and very consistent with her serve,? Kaszeta said.
‘We played good defense around her, but her serve helped us put the pressure on Clarkston and that made a big difference,? he added.
Dillon had 19 digs for the Highlanders.
Jilian Lochricchio continued her hot serving for the Wolves, reeling off four straight service points to put Clarkston ahead 21-16 in the first game. Rutledge’s shot went out of bounds, giving the Wolves a 25-22 win.
The Highlanders held the lead after breaking a 10-10 tie early in game two. Rutledge ran off three service points and Dillon won it for Adams after a quick timeout, 25-19.
The Wolves had Adams on the brink in game three with a 24-18 lead, before Dillon rattled off six points in a tying rally that brought fans to their feet.
Amanda Byrd’s diving one-handed digs could not save Clarkston, who lost 27-25.
Clarkston’s 9-6 lead to begin the fourth set would not last, as the Highlanders controlled the final game with at least a two-point advantage throughout the contest, finishing with a 25-22 victory.
The Wolves have one more non-league contest against winless Waterford Mott at home on Thursday before the OAA league tournament on Saturday at Farmington High School. This is the first year the league has employed the round-robin style tournament, which is weighted for half of each team’s final OAA standing.
Troy is the likely favorite in the tournament after mainaining the top regular-season record in the OAA this season. The Colts were 7-0 after they defeated last year’s co-champion Birmingham Seaholm on Jan. 29.