Sussex Academy sweeps Lake in Homecoming tripleheader
Homecoming was a resounding success for Sussex Academy Oct. 12.
Field hockey got the party started with a 3-1 victory over Lake Forest, volleyball kept things moving with a win by the same score against the Spartans, and soccer topped off the night with a dramatic 2-0 win.
Sophomore Ryan Lowe was the first Seahawks player to get on the board and celebrated joyously with her field hockey teammates. Two quick goals by junior Rilyn Lehman off assists from fellow junior Morgan Leeper and senior Callie Short to start the second gave the Seahawks all the offense they needed to secure the 3-1 victory. Sophomore goalie Kacie Rawlings recorded nine saves in the winning effort.
Continuing the fun was the scorching-hot volleyball team, which had won its last four matches without dropping a single set. That streak was broken after the Spartans took the first set 25-19.
The Seahawks rebounded on the strength of seniors Danica Duncan, Grace Fiorilla, Sarah Rowley and Carmen Merrick. Duncan led the team with 18 kills, Fiorilla’s 36 assists were a team high, five aces from Rowley topped the team stats, and Merrick had 11 digs, 10 kills and two blocks to go along with her two aces. Junior Dymond Steele’s 27 digs led the team, while fellow junior Savannah Montgomery wasn’t far behind with 23 of her own. The Seahawks won the final three sets of the match 25-11, 25-22, 25-20.
In the nightcap, the party picked up more steam with two renditions of the national anthem, one performed by Bailey Bounce and the other by Amelia Kramer. Sussex Academy’s soccer team seemed to feed off the energy from a bright and bouncy student section.
No steam was lost during the special halftime ceremonies when the Homecoming court, king and queen were named. An elated Phil Trice fired up the crowd when he was named king and the cheers continued for Homecoming Queen Janessa Sutton.
The Seahawks continued to press in the second half and were wiling to take a few more chances. In the 70th minute, sophomore Liam Stegall found fellow sophomore George Sapna to get the home team officially on the scoreboard. The two had been close to converting quite a few times in the first half and their persistence paid off. Two minutes later, sophomore Chase Ballinger found eighth-grader Bodhi Williams for an insurance goal. The 2-0 victory capped off a Homecoming night of victory for Sussex Academy.
As the seasons come to a close and the state tournament beckons, all three teams sit with winning records. Field hockey moves to 6-4 with five games left, volleyball sits at 7-4 with four matches remaining and soccer is 8-2 with five games to go. Not to be outdone by their fall counterparts, both cross country teams are 8-0 with only the Joe O’Neill Invitational remaining before the Henlopen Conference Championships Saturday, Nov. 4.
