Willard beats Edison for third time

ATTICA — This time, Willard came out ready to roll. The Crimson Flashes dropped a set to Edison in a district semifinal last year before winning in four sets. They also dropped a set to Edison two weeks ago before winning in four on their way to an SBC Bay Division co-title with Huron. Willard left nothing to chance Tuesday night in a Division V district semifinal, sweeping the Chargers 25-15, 25-6, and 25-14 at Seneca East High School. "We wanted to come out focused and not think we were going to win because we beat them two times in the regular season," senior Teagan Schaffer said. "We came out and played our game." Willard improved to 21-3 and has won 14 straight matches. They dropped only four sets during their winning streak. The Crimson Flashes were motivated after last Thursday's sectional final at Willard. Edison played in the second match, and the Flashes knew they were there. "They played at Willard on Thursday when we played (in the sectional finals)," Willard coach Ashley Bond said. "They were very loud and obnoxious while we were playing, and that kind of fired our team up, and we were ready to go. "We talked about just going out there and playing our game. They were focused and ready to go." Willard dominated all three sets. Kills by Leah Weiss and Natalie Slone finished off the first set. The Flashes rolled in Set 2. Camryn Wiers and Schaeffer had late blocks, and a Schaeffer kill ended it. Schaeffer finished the match with eight kills. "I know that's my part on the team," she said. "In practice we work on hand placement in blocking and closing the block. That's one of our big things." Schaffer also had seven kills. "When you have five hitters that can all put the ball down, as a blocker you don't know where the ball's going, and that makes everybody better," Bond said. "Even if you're not getting set, if you're holding your block, you're doing your job. "We talked to Teagan about that all year. She understands that she can hold her block and someone else can get a kill." Weiss had eight kills and eight digs, and Slone had seven kills and eight digs. Wiers finished with five kills and nine digs. Mya Stephens had 17 assists and 10 digs, and Alexis Rettig finished with 12 digs. In the third set, a Schaffer kill gave Willard a 23-13 lead, and a kill by senior Paige Adams ended the match. "We knew they were going to come out and serve hard and aggressively at us, and we had to get it done on serve receive to have a shot," Edison coach Sean Hoover said. "We didn't get a lot of balls where we could run an offense early. "When we beat them at a set earlier at their place, we were able to be the aggressors and make them move on defense," he added. We just never got our ball handling under control to do that today. They're a good team. They're athletic, and they've got hitters everywhere. They block well, and that makes it hard to get balls around them." Edison, which finished the season 10-14, bids farewell to seven seniors. "They play hard, and they're fun to watch," Hoover said. "It will be tough not watching them play next year." Willard, the top seed in its district, will play third-seeded Otsego (15-8) in a district final at 6 p.m. Thursday at Kalida High School. Otsego upset second-seeded Liberty-Benton in five sets Tuesday.