The Centennial Bulldogs will head out to face off against the Pine View Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Pine View took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Centennial, who comes in off a win.
While Centennial's victory against Somerset Sky Pointe wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Bulldogs narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past the Eagles 3-2. The victory continues a trend for the Bulldogs in their matchups with the Eagles: they've now won four in a row.
Centennial took Somerset Sky Pointe into a fifth set where they got it done with a five-point win. The match finished with set scores of 23-25, 25-19, 25-21, 22-25, 15-10.
Josh Wagner and Ty Ahlstrom were among the main playmakers for Centennial as the former had 15 digs and two assists and the latter had 11 digs.
Centennial was lethal from the service line and finished the game with 14 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least five aces in 23 consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Pine View didn't have quite enough to beat Desert Hills on Thursday and fell 3-2. The Panthers have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
In an exciting match in which no team claimed back-to-back wins, Pine View sadly wound up on the wrong side. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 25-21, 20-25, 25-22, 26-28, 15-8.
Despite the loss, Pine View saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Preston Twede had 17 digs and two aces. Those 17 digs set a new season-high mark for Twede.
Centennial pushed their record up to 23-9 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. As for Pine View, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-7.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Tuesday's game: Centennial has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 10.2 aces per game. However, it's not like Pine View struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.3 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Centennial skirted past Pine View 3-2 in their previous meeting back in April of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bulldogs since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
