NORTHFIELD — Frontier Regional sophomore outside hitter Olivia Deane has spent the past three years learning from senior outside hitter Lauren Davenport.
On Wednesday night, Deane showed Davenport and the Turners Falls girls volleyball team everything that she has picked up.
Deane crushed a team-high 15 kills and also had a big performance from the service line to help the top-seeded Red Hawks move one win away from their 14th consecutive Western Massachusetts Division 3 title with a 25-12, 25-7, 25-16 victory over the fourth-seeded Thunder at Messer Gymnasium at Pioneer Valley Regional School.
“Every game I come ready to play,” Deane said. “I love playing volleyball, so it’s easy to be ready for a game like this.”
The Red Hawks (20-2) will meet No. 2 Lee (17-3) in Saturday’s championship match, which marks the fourth straight season the two will play for the sectional crown. Lee defeated No. 3 Mount Greylock, 25-14, 25-20, 25-19 in the other semifinal on Wednesday.
Deane finished 15-for-27 in her attacking opportunities. She said that watching Davenport has been a big reason she has been so successful in her first season in the starting lineup.
“I’ve always looked up to Lauren and playing with her has made me a better player,” Deane said. “She hits hard so I hit hard because I look up to her so much and she is such a great hitter.”
Davenport, who finished with eight kills, said she was not at all surprised by the success of her teammate.
“She had a fantastic night,” Davenport said. “She has that in her. I see her in practice and in matches and as a sophomore she impresses me every single day.”
Deane set the tone early as she was a thorn in the Thunder’s side in the first set. The sophomore said that while it was not in the game plan to specifically get her the ball at the net, her and the Red Hawks always want to be aggressive from the onset.
“We worked really hard in practice and I think we came out focused and ready to be aggressive every point, and that’s what has carried us to the Western Mass. finals,” she said.
While Deane had several big hits in the opening set, the sophomore also did well serving the ball, something that stood out to Frontier coach Sean MacDonald.
“If you look at our stats, the thing that sticks out with Olivia is her serving,” he explained. “Lauren has more kills this season, and she would certainly have that many because she is a great hitter, but one of the reason Olivia’s kills are down is because she spends so much time at the service line.”
The Red Hawks never let up, winning the second set by a wide margin. In the third, Frontier jumped out to a 10-0 lead and MacDonald was able to use his bench players to get some tournament experience and close out the match.
The victory moves Frontier to the WMass finals, where they are no strangers. While it may not be new to the team, the experience will be new for three players who are first-year starters for the Red Hawks: Deane, libero Reilly Isler and setter Elizabeth Fuqua. Ashley Telega is also playing a new position this season for the Hawks. Davenport said that getting the opportunity to play in the WMass finals in her senior season is exciting for her, she is also thrilled that so many newcomers are getting their first taste.
“It’s pretty amazing,” she said. “Even though it’s not new for me, a lot of the team I’m playing with is new, so it’s exciting to get the chance to play with them.”
Telega finished with seven kills and three aces, while Fuqua had one kill, 24 assists and a team-high six aces. Isler finished with four digs, and Hailey Orloski had three kills.