Freeport girls volleyball sweeps Derry, moves closer to another section title

By: Michael Love
Tuesday, October 10, 2023 | 9:30 PM

The Freeport girls volleyball team hadn’t allowed a Section 5-2A foe to win a set through 10 matches.

Derry hoped to be the first to do that Tuesday as the Trojans got a second crack at the Yellowjackets in their home gym.

But Freeport had other ideas, and the No. 1 team in the Western Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association’s WPIAL Class 2A rankings swept past Derry, 25-16, 25-18, and 25-14.

“It wasn’t a very clean effort from us tonight,” Freeport coach Tom Phillips said. “It is a section match, and we should be playing them a little cleaner. Obviously, we’re happy with a 3-0 win, but we struggled uncharacteristically from the service line and had a lot of passing and hitting errors. It wasn’t our real game at all. But give Derry credit. They came to play. They did a few things that led to our mistakes.”

The Yellowjackets improved to 13-1 overall and 11-0 in the section. Freeport hosts Neighborhood Academy on Thursday with a chance to clinch at least a share of the section title.

Burrell defeated Valley on Tuesday to remain alive at 9-2 in the section.

“We have to move on, look forward to getting back in the gym, and keep working,” Phillips said.

Derry, which fell to 9-4 overall and 8-3 in the section, will look to bounce back Thursday with a section matchup at Deer Lakes. The Trojans swept the Lancers on Sept. 19.

“To do well against Freeport, you have to play a game that they don’t let you play,” veteran Trojans coach Brock Smith said. “When you try to extend points, they’re really good at not letting the ball hit the floor. They have girls who can terminate with power, and we don’t have the termination ability they do.

“The scores can be what they are, but I think the girls played really well. We got good touches, we blocked a couple, got some good digs, and made some hits and good quality swings. It just comes down to us not having the experience they do. They are a polished team, and we’re still a work in progress. We’re getting better, but we’re just not at that caliber yet.”

With their backs against the wall, the Trojans tried to rally in Set 3. Freshman Haylee Myers’ hit that wasn’t returned by Freeport trimmed the Yellowjackets’ lead to 11-10.

But Derry wasn’t able to get the tying point. From there, Freeport went on a 12-2 run with the help of kills from senior Autumn English and junior Alaina Whitlinger, a block and a kill from Josie Russo and a redirect over the net from senior Grace Beach.

A Derry hitting error on set and match points gave Freeport a 25-14 victory and completed the 3-0 win.

Senior Sydney Selker delivered three service points, including a pair of aces, as Freeport jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the first set.

A hit from Whitlinger and two kills from Russo punctuated an 8-2 start for the Yellowjackets. Derry called a timeout to regroup.

Freeport extended its lead to as much as 10 at 15-5 before the Trojans, behind the hitting and strong play from juniors Gabrielle Sisak and Alayna Williams, senior Emily Berkhimer, and others, rallied to within six at 20-14.

But a couple of Trojans hitting miscues and kills from Russo and Whitlinger helped close out a 25-16 win for a 1-0 Freeport lead.

The Yellowjackets overcame eight hitting errors in the second set, five of them coming off of their serve, to take the set, 25-18, and extend their lead to 2-0.

A serve from junior Leah Schreckengost that was not returned by the Derry defense closed out the win. The Trojans again tried to make a run and cut into what was an eight-point Freeport lead on several occasions. A hit from senior Cassie Byers and a kill from Sisak helped Derry’s cause.

But Whitlinger, Russo, Selker and the rest of the Freeport attack made its mark in the midst of some of the team’s miscues.

Whitlinger and Russo led the way for Freeport with 12 kills and two blocks apiece. English added five kills.

Alayna Williams and Cassie Byers had six and five kills, respectively, to lead Derry, which also got 22 assists from junior Regan Repak.

“Playing at Derry is tough with the lower ceiling. When it hits the ceiling, it’s coming straight down,” Selker said.

“We have a higher ceiling (at Freeport Middle School) so we practice higher passes. We had to adjust to lower passes. It was also a loud atmosphere. We just had to focus on our game and focus on our first passes and get good kills. We overcame some tough spots. It was a nice win.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Derry Area, Freeport