LYNN — Tuesday’s match between the Tech and KIPP volleyball teams went back and forth most of the night, but in the end the Tigers did what they had to do to take home the 3-0 win on the road. Tech won by set scores of 25-16, 25-21 and 25-18.
“I think we just had to get back into our game at certain points,” Tech coach Kaitlyn Wechsler said. “We got a little sloppy at times and they got us out of our rhythm. But once we got it back to our kind of volleyball we did well. We used our serves a lot which was our plan going into it.”
The service game was a clear strength for the Tigers, as it has been for the whole season. Nadesha Martinez led the way with eight aces while Daleri Garcia and Jasinairy Camilo each had five. Derlande Montas added two aces along with a team-high four kills.
“Daleri always takes us on a run serving,” Wechsler said. “Her, Arelys Ruiz along with Nadesha have really killed it with serves. Our aces have been our strong point for the year really. When our servers are on we’re doing well and they were on (Tuesday).”
For KIPP, Tuesday was actually one of the better games of the season, but the Panthers just couldn’t get over the hump whenever they caught up to Tech.
“This whole season so far we’ve run into those situations,” KIPP coach Taylor Hanley said. “Coming close and then it’s like a two point set every time. But I would say this is one of the better games we’ve played and stayed in it until the end energy wise. We kill ourselves and just need to clean up fundamentals. It’s come a good way since the beginning of the season.”
Captains Chelsea De La Rosa and Tatiana Megie-Maddrey both played well for the Panthers, while Gaby Trejo also shined in her first game starting.
Tech took an early 5-2 lead in the first set before a pair of aces from Megie-Maddrey helped tie things up. From there both teams went back and forth all the way, leading to a 14-14 tie midway through the set. That’s when the Tigers went on a 14-2 run the rest of the way highlighted by a string of service points from De La Rosa to go ahead 1-0.
The second set ended as the closest of the night at 25-21, but it didn’t start out that way. A pair of aces by Rocio Maldonado, a third by De La Rosa and a nice kill by Emely Reyes helped the Tigers build a 7-1 lead early on. From there it was an uphill battle for the Panthers but they didn’t give in. KIPP eventually cut the lead down to three, but a service error put an end to any comeback attempt and Tech went ahead 2-0.
“(Tuesday), our serving was not very consistent,” Hanley said. “But Chelsea has a powerful serve and Jaynie Maestre and Juliana Pinto have come up clutch for us too. All three of them have been pretty good, it’s just about consistency.”
The lack of consistency reared its head again in the third and final set. Both teams battled to a 11-11 tie before a block followed by an ace by Montas shifted the momentum in Tech’s favor again. The Tigers led by at least four points the rest of the way and closed out the win.
Tech (5-3) and KIPP (0-5) have a day of rest before playing again Thursday (5).
