By Drew Terhall

DailyAdvocate.com

GREENVILLE — The Lady Wave volleyball team are winners of five straight matches as they swept Fairborn on Oct. 4 at home.

The team opened up the first set on a 16-0 run. Head coach Michelle Hardesty said after that run, Fairborn started to give them some troubles. But, the team overcame that as they continue to have a great season.

“We had a few hiccups along the way. But, we still won in three. These girls are so much fun to coach. They have great attitudes, they’re very competitive. They want to have this great season. When they get down or get behind, they’re staying patient and finishing. That’s all we can ask for,” Hardesty said.

The Lady Skyhawks didn’t go away quietly in that first set. Once they got a point on the board, they started to get into a groove.

Greenville still kept a big lead as the hitters were leading the way early. The Lady Wave won the first set, 25-13.

Fairborn gained enough momentum to make the second set a close one. Both teams matched each other point for point.

The set went into extra points as the teams were battling during each volley. They didn’t let much get past them during the second set.

Eventually, Greenville strung together some good possessions and won the second set, 27-25.

Assistant coach Jim Hardesty said the hitters played well in this one, with junior Brooke Schmidt leading the way early. Hitters like senior Skylar Bryson and junior Olivia Flatter stepped up as well offensively. Unofficially, Schmidt had 15 kills with Bryson having eight and Flatter having six. Sophomore Kyndall Burke also had six kills.

Then the Lady Wave came out in the third set and handled business. With the offense clicking and the serving being more of an asset in the set, Greenville made sure they would end this match when they could.

Fairborn didn’t make it easy on Greenville. Hardesty said Fairborn played them tough and have the blocking that challenges their hitters. The Lady Skyhawks made a few runs at evening the score during the third set, but couldn’t get extend many of their runs.

Both Michelle and Jim Hardesty said junior Shyanne Gibboney did a great job serving and passing in this one. Unofficially, Gibboney had five service aces and sophomore Kindyl Peltz had six service aces.

Jim Hardesty said the team is on the right path as they close out the season. They are playing well and positioned themselves to be one of the better teams the Hardesty’s have coached.

“I think we’re really on track where we want to be. This is the best position we’ve ever been in since we’ve been here,” Hardesty said.

The Lady Wave end their season with a road game at Piqua on Oct. 10 and host Sidney on Oct. 12 at 7 p.m.

They will know where they land in postseason play as tournament draw is on Oct. 8. Michelle Hardesty said they have a lot of prep to do between now and the tournament.

With the sectional they are in, they will face some different challenges during their tournament run.

“There’s not a lot of teams that see us throughout the season in our bracket. Draw is Sunday, I expect with our record going into it we got to be one of the top seeds. We should get a nice choice of where we play and when,” Hardesty said.

The coaches will have some work to do to be familiar with their unfamiliar tournament foes. Hardesty said they will look at video, stats and see who their future tournament opponent has played to prepare for them.

One this is for certain, the Lady Wave have been tested this season. Hardesty said the MVL has challenged them all season long and helped this team get ready for tournament play.

Greenville is now 14-6 with a 12-4 conference record.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]