MONTICELLO -- It was Senior Night in The Pit for the Panthers on Monday night but the Fallsburg Comets didn’t let that deter their focus. 

In the first set of the matchup the squads looked evenly matched with back-and-forth volleys and scoring from both teams. Fallsburg started off the first match with a run, but the Panthers Abiana Alvarez comes up with a dig followed by two aces to slow Fallsburg’s momentum. With a service error from the Panthers, Fallsburg would quickly regain possession. Fallsburg would end up taking that set 25-18, a close match. 

In the second set it would be much of the same. The Comets would start out with another run, forcing the Panthers to call a time to try to stop the driving Comets. With a service error by Fallsburg, the Panthers would quickly try to turn it around by making a run of their own bringing the match to 12-15, Fallsburg. Despite service errors from Fallsburg their key players still stood out. Some noteable players for the Comets were Maya Ballard with 13 digs and 5 aces, Zoey Ketcham with 4 digs, 4 kills, 2 aces and 1 block and Jordan Wall-Carty with 6 digs, 8 kills, 4 aces and 9 assists. The Comets would take set two, 25-19.

In the third set the Panthers just couldn’t recover from the two set deficit. Fallsburg would dominate the third set and put the icing on the cake. Comets crushed the Panthers in a 25-12 victory in the last set. Key players for the Panthers were Deeanna Mann with 6 aces and 2  kills and Taylor Crumley with 2 blocks and 4 digs.

In speaking with Fallsburg’s Coach Amy Johnson after the Comets’ win, she said, “I’m really proud of the way these girls played tonight. They continued to push the tempo throughout the game. We were able to give more players time. It was a really good day.”

In a League match-up, Monticello will face Cornwall at home on Wednesday, October 16th at 6pm and Fallsburg will play Ellenville in Non-League play on their home court on Thursday, October 17th at 5:30pm.