Starr's Mill places second in volleyball tournament

By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@Thecitizennews.com

The Starr's Mill Lady Panthers volleyball team was in top form this past weekend in Conyers, bringing home the second place trophy in the Conyers Classic Invitational.

In first-round play last Thursday, Starr's Mill defeated Chamblee High School and Union Grove High School, taking both matches 2-0. When play resumed Saturday morning, Starr's Mill faced Oconee High School and walked away with their first defeat of the tournament, 0-2.

In the quarter finals, the Lady Panthers squared off against county rival McIntosh High School in an exciting match highlighted with long rally points which brought out the best in both teams. When all was said and done, Starr's Mill came out on top, winning the match 2-1.

The Lady Panthers then advanced to the semifinal round to face Henry County High School. Impressive defensive play by Henry County kept the attack line of Starr's Mill hitters looking for way to score, which they finally did, taking the match 2-1 in another exciting three game match.

In the final round, Starr's Mill again battled Oconee. After dropping the first game, the Lady Panthers once more got behind in the points in the second game, only to rally back to tie the score. The front line of Oconee, however, kept the Lady Panthers from converting the rally to a win, taking the match and the first place finish.

Turning in notable performances for the two-day tournament were Niki Patriarca with 64 assists; Sarah Reed with 28 kills; Lauren Dillon with 49 digs; Erica Rutland with 31 blocks; Karen Baaklini with 12 service aces and Shelley MacBean with 11 service aces.

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