Vikings volleyball falls to CR in five
The Cape volleyball team lost a tough five-set match 19-25, 25-19, 18-25, 25-14, 7-15 to a scrappy, undefeated Caesar Rodney squad Oct. 16.
“A tough result tonight,” said Cape coach Tyler Coupe. “It was a match that I think certainly was within our grasp, but some missed opportunities by us.”
Junior Harper Mamele led the Vikings’ power with 12 kills and 10 digs. Kaylee Sockriter put up 29 assists and seven digs. Amara Fruchtman and Journey McDaniel scored 18 and 12 digs, respectively.
“I do want to make sure to acknowledge and celebrate our athletes for having back-to-back night matches, each going five sets,” Coupe said. “That’s a brutal combo on the body and the mind, and I couldn’t be more proud of how they stayed engaged and the effort they put in. CR is the last remaining undefeated team in the state, and they served as a tough opponent. I thought we applied steady service pressure that gave us an opportunity to get some positive defensive reads on their attack; however, we weren’t as efficient as we needed to be offensively.”
Coupe spoke of the five-set matches that got away from the Vikings.
“In set five, we found ourselves looking a little timid in ourselves and it shows, whether it be a hesitation on a defensive pass, stepping in front of someone or a timid attack,” he said. “We’ve lost five five-set matches this season, and when you total all the points scored up, we’ve lost each match on average by five points, then divide that by five sets per match, [and] we’ve lost each set by one. A stat not created falsely but to show our girls a point here or there really can make a difference, and there’s no time to take off within a match.”
Cape defeated Smyrna 25-11, 19-25, 25-15, 25-17 at the Serving Up Support Volleyball Tournament Oct. 18 at Saint Mark’s.
Mamele slammed 21 kills, Fruchtman had 20 digs and Sockriter put up 37 assists.
Cape will celebrate its seniors Thursday, Oct. 23, after the match with Dover.
Dan has worked for the Cape Gazette for more than 30 years as a photographer and reporter, covering high school sports and happenings around eastern Sussex County. He won a photography award from the National Newspaper Association, and numerous awards from the Maryland, Delaware, D.C. Press Association. A Delaware native, Dan graduated from Cape in 1972 and returned as a teacher and coach in the 1980s. He retired from the classroom in 2016. He was inducted into Cape High’s Legends Stadium in 2016. In his spare time, Dan enjoys spending time with his wife, two sons, grandchildren and dogs.
