After knocking off Pearl River in the first round of the sectional playoffs, the seventh-seeded Ardsley Lady Panthers took on the second-seeded Byram Hills Lady Bobcats on November 3 in a Class B quarterfinal showdown. In a Byram Hills gym jam-packed with both Ardsley and Byram supporters, the Lady Bobcats protected their home court and remained undefeated with a 3-1 victory.
Points did not come easily for either squad, but the difference in the match was Byram’s potent hitting duo of Danielle Raskin and Sammi Tannor, which combined for 43 kills on the day. Meanwhile, kills were harder to come by for Ardsley. Shannon Bruno led the Lady Panthers with 14 kills, but her team’s 25 total kills were not enough to keep up with Byram’s 51. In addition, the Bobcats’ defense prolonged—and won—numerous points that would have gone Ardsley’s way against any other team.
The Lady Bobcats took game one, 25-15, and game two, 25-17. However, the Lady Panthers won five of the last six points in game two, and they carried some momentum into game three. With the season on the line, Ardsley pulled out a 25-22 game-three win. But in a hard-fought game four, Byram Hills capitalized on a few Ardsley communication lapses to pull ahead. The Lady Panthers did all they could to keep it close, but they never caught up, and Byram Hills won, 25-20, to seal the victory.
Raskin and Tannor had 23 and 20 kills, respectively, as Byram Hills improved to 19-0 overall. Chelsea Hammerschmidt had 42 assists, and Casey Fang added 11 digs. The win sent Byram to the sectional semifinals against Westlake on November 5, where the Lady Bobcats continued their domination with a 3-0 triumph.
Libero Toni Pilla had 22 digs for the Lady Panthers, while Carmen Passaretti and Julia Fraietta had 11 digs apiece. Nicole Galletta contributed 30 assists. Ardsley won eight of its final ten matches, and ended a terrific season at 14-5.
