By Rob Potter
NEWBURGH — November 5, 2002 – Once the Millbrook Lady Blazers grabbed momentum Saturday evening, it was tough to stop them.
Millbrook (11-8) blazed to a three-game victory over Fallsburg (6-9) in the Section IX Class D girls volleyball championship final, which was held at Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh.
The Lady Blazers grabbed early leads of 4-1 and 14-6 en route to taking game one by a 25-16 margin. Folowing an early 2-2 tie in game two, Millbrook outscored Fallsburg by a 15-9 margin over the next few minutes to take a 17-11 advantage.
Down 24-16, the Lady Comets rallied to close the gap to 24-20. But Millbrook quickly scored to win the game 25-20.
In the third game, Fallsburg could not get any closer than a 6-6 tie just a few minutes into the game. The Lady Blazers went on a 19-7 run over the remainder of the game to score a 25-13 win in the game and overall victory in the match.
“Today we had the best bus ride to a game we have ever had,” Millbrook Coach Shawn Stelker said. “The girls definitely came ready to play today. They did very well.”
With their win, the Lady Blazers move on to face the Section IV Class D champion this weekend at Horseheads High School. Ironically, the match will be a homecoming for Stelker, who noted that he graduated from Horseheads High School.
When asked about the match, Fallsburg Coach Elissa Baum mentioned one word – inconsistent.
“We couldn’t stay focused today,” she said. “We didn’t get to play our game. But we still had a great year and we’ll be back next year.”
Millbrook’s Emily Winchombe had 10 digs, nine kills, eight points, four aces and four blocks in the match.
Fallsburg was led by Rachel Feller. The sophomore outside hitter recorded 15 digs, seven kills, two aces and two assists.
Senior outside hitter Jenna Hartman added 15 digs, four kills, two assists and an ace for the Lady Comets. Senior defensive specialist Sammie Anderman had 15 digs and four aces, senior setter Denise Calvello made 17 digs and 12 assists and junior setter Rebecca Haber recorded 10 assists and 10 digs.
“It was a pretty good season overall,” said Hartman, who added that she hopes to continue her volleyball career in college. “We had some ups and downs, but we made it to the sectional final.”
“We didn’t play as well as we could have tonight,” Feller commented. “But we had a really good season and hopefully next year we will make it back to sectionals again.”
Feller is one of several Lady Comets returning next season. But Fallsburg’s four seniors – Sammie Anderman, Denise Calvello, Hartman and Aeowyn Rausch – played their last scholastic match on Saturday.
“We definitely had a wonderful season,” Anderman said. “We played well and made it to sectionals two years in a row. That was really great.”