If New Albany was riding high fresh off their 3-0 takedown of Central Crossing on Tuesday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. The Eagles took a 3-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Pickerington North Panthers on Thursday. The Eagles were not able to make up for their loss to the Panthers from their previous meeting back in October of 2024.
New Albany started the match hot and won the first set, but they struggled down the stretch and lost the last three. The final score came out to 22-25, 25-14, 25-14, 25-21.

Aline Bhat
09/18/25 @ Pickerington North | 13 |
09/16/25 @ Central Crossing | 14 |
09/11/25 vs Lincoln | 20 |
09/04/25 @ Hilliard Bradley | 26 |
09/02/25 vs Upper Arlington | 20 |
+ 13 more games |
New Albany's defeat came despite a true team effort with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Aline Bhat, who had 13 digs and three aces. Bhat has been hot for a while, having posted ten or more digs the last 18 times she's played. Another player making a difference was Jillian Welsh, who had eight digs and three aces.
Among those leading the charge was Alexa Thomas, who had 13 digs. That's the most digs she has posted over her last nine matchups.
New Albany's loss was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 5-9. As for Pickerington North, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-6 record this season.
New Albany wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next contest, a 3-0 defeat against Westerville Central on the 23rd. As for Pickerington North, they have also already played their next matchup, a 3-0 victory against Olentangy Berlin on the 20th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps