After flying high against Wickliffe last Tuesday, Kirtland came back down to earth. The Kirtland Hornets fell 3-1 to the Crestwood Red Devils on Wednesday. The Hornets were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Red Devils apparently hadn't forgotten their loss the last time these teams played back in October of 2023.
Kirtland started the match hot and won the first set, but they struggled down the stretch and lost the last three. The match finished with set scores of 9-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-16.
Kirtland's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Nina Alfieri, who had 27 digs and two aces. Alfieri has been hot recently, having posted 13 or more digs the last four times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Riley Javins, who had eight digs and 13 assists.
Even though they lost, Kirtland was lethal from the service line and finished the game with 13 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least five aces in 16 consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Kirtland's loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 9-5. As for Crestwood, the victory (which was their fourth in a row) raised their record to 9-5.
Kirtland didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next matchup, a 3-0 win vs. Lutheran West on the 21st. Crestwood has also already played their next game, a 3-0 victory against Villa Angela-St. Joseph on the 21st.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
