Lawrenceville has jumped to an early lead in the Little Illini Conference volleyball race. The Indians improved to 2-0 in the LIC with a straight-set win at Paris on Thursday night.
There were three league games played, plus one non-conference affair. Here’s what happened (x-denotes conference game):
x-Lawrenceville 2, Paris 0
x-Mt. Carmel 2, Robinson 1
x-Newton 2, Casey-Westfield 0
Effingham St. Anthony 2, Marshall 1
Lawrenceville (2-0 in LIC, 13-3 overall) won the first set at Paris (0-2, 13-5), 25-17, then followed with a 25-22 second-set win to earn the sweep. Sophomore middle hitter Reagan Ivers finished with eight kills and four blocks to help lead the way for Lawrenceville.
Undefeated Newton (1-0, 13-0), which has either won outright or shared nine of the last 10 Little Illini titles, opened conference play with a 25-10, 25-21 victory over Casey-Westfield (1-1, 9-4). Senior outside hitter Allie Hermann collected seven kills while hitting .357 at the net. Newton is ranked No. 1 in Class 2A in the latest Massey ratings.
Mt.Carmel (1-1, 5-9) rallied for a 2-1 win at Robinson (0-1, 8-5). After dropping the first set, 25-20, the Lady Aces bounced back with 25-17 and 25-20 set wins to earn their first LIC win of the year.
Outside of the league, Marshall (12-6) fell to 13th-ranked (2A) Effingham St. Anthony (10-1), 2-1, on Thursday in Marshall. After splitting the first two sets, St. Anthony pulled away in the rubber set, 25-13, to take the match. Sophomore middle hitter Lillian Ross led Marshall with 10 kills. She is second in the LIC in that category, just behind teammate Harper Richardson (senior), who added seven kills.
The next round of conference games is slated for next Thursday (Sept. 24):
Robinson at Marshall
Mt. Carmel at Casey-Westfield
Newton at Lawrenceville
