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Win Streak Extended to 7 as Volleyball Cats Defeat Stow-Munroe Falls

By Joe Ginley, 04/25/18, 1:30PM EDT

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The Cats did a nice job on the front line.

In the past two weeks, the Saint Ignatius varsity volleyball team has caught fire.

The Wildcats have won seven games in a row, 20 of 23 sets, and have outscored opponents, 514-393. 

The Stow-Munroe Falls Bulldogs became the last team to fall to the Volleyball Cats on Tuesday. The Wildcats earned a quick 3-0 victory – 25-14, 25-15, 25-7 – on the road to improve to 10-1 on the year. 

From the get-go, the Cats attacked the Bulldogs. The Wildcats' strong play, especially at the net, spooked Stow, leading to eight errors in the first nine points for the hosts. The Wildcats built a big 10-2 lead to take control of the set.  

The Bulldogs responded with a 6-2 run to bring the set to within four, but then Matthew Rogers took over. With two aces and a Quinn Flanagan spike, the Wildcat returned to the driver's seat. Phil Catanzaro steered the Cats around the final turn with four aces to grant the Cats a 25-14 set one win. 

In set two, Stow-Munroe Falls made adjustments and begin to improve its play. The Bulldogs won four of the first nine points, leading the Wildcats to take a timeout. Try as the Bulldogs might, though, the home team did not have an answer for Andrew Boeckman. The freshman tore off two aces and two kills to rev the Cats to a 14-9 lead. Later, with Aidan McCaffrey at the service line, the Wildcats placed it out of reach with four straight points at 21-11. A Stow error cemented the score at 25-15. 

The Wildcats posted nothing short of a dominant effort in the third and final set. Four aces by McCaffrey, along with a block and kill from Andrew Chalhoub, motored the Volleyball Cats to a 9-0 lead. Stow called time to regroup, but the Wildcats showed no mercy. The visitors placed perfect serves, the back line dug the ball well, McCaffrey set the ball with ease, and Boeckman and Co. continued to leap at the net.

The Wildcats rolled to a 12-3 run midway through the third and eventually finished off the Bulldogs, 25-7. The Volleyball Cats tabbed an impressive 7 aces and 8 kills against just 4 errors in a marvelous third set. 

The show continues on the road on Thursday evening. The Wildcats will head south to play Archbishop Hoban at 7:15 pm. The Centerville Elite 8 then awaits the Wildcats this weekend.

JV Update: The JV Cats advanced to 9-2 on the year with a 25-19, 20-25, and 25-21 win over Stow-Munroe Falls. The squad will also face the Knights tomorrow, at 6 pm.