Marblehead’s Eve Rice (25) rises up to stop the ball. Item Photo by Katie Morrison
By Katie Morrison
MARBLEHEAD — Marblehead’s Eve Rice looks the part of a volleyball player. The Magicians senior has a big presence at the net and is one of the tallest players on Marblehead’s roster.
Rice used that height to her advantage Tuesday afternoon, as she set a school record for blocks with seven in the Magicians’ 3-0 win over rival Swampscott.
“She came up huge for us today. She was changing the momentum, not letting the ball come back,” Marblehead coach Killeen Miller said. “That was really big for us.”
Rice’s first set was her best, as Marblehead held on for a 25-16 win. Rice came up with four blocks, all of them resulting in points for the Magicians.
The set started out close and stayed that way through the first 20 points, with Marblehead grabbing an 11-9 lead on Rice’s first block of the game.
Izzy Curtin gave Marblehead four service points, including an ace, to give it a 15-9 lead.
The Magicians maintained a lead through the rest of the set, but Swampscott’s Cassidy Ryan and captain Leanne Nisbet scraped together a few points late to pull a bit closer. Marblehead put the set away on a kill from Jenny Norcross, assisted by Izzy Castineyra.
Each set seemed to follow the same format. Swampscott kept it close for the first 10 or 15 points, then Marblehead went on a run to create distance and build up a sizable lead. Swampscott scrapped together a few points late, but the gap was too much to overcome.
That, Miller says, is by design.
“That’s what we’re really working on, changing the momentum to have it always be on our side,” Miller said. “When we’re on a serving run, we want to keep that going. If we’re in a serve-receive, our goal is that the first ball, we’re getting right out of it. I think it’s all about thinking ahead and looking ahead, and thinking how can we get that momentum back on our side.”
“Once that happens, it gets in their heads and it’s very tough to get out,” Swampscott coach Chip Emery said. “That’s where the mental toughness comes in, and I think we still need to work on that.”
Swampscott jumped out to an 8-5 lead in the second set, but saw that lead slip away as Norcross delivered 11 straight service points to boost Marblehead to a 19-10 lead. The Magicians remained on top and put the game away on a long volley, highlighted by a big dig from Norcross, to win 25-11.
Senior Clara Pollard looked strong for Marblehead and Ryan, Taylor McBurney and Olivia Kiely played well for Swampscott in the third set, which the Magicians won, 25-16. Junior Mandy Dumais punctuated the win with an ace for the game point.
The Big Blue looked strong against Marblehead, a team that Emery figures will be his squad’s biggest test, along with Danvers. After finishing last season with a 2-15 record, Swampscott has already shown that its improved by leaps and bounds in 2016. Tuesday’s loss was Swampscott’s first of the season, coming into the game 3-0.
“Swampscott has a new culture, they’re really after it this year,” Miller said. “I really think the program has changed a lot in just a year’s time. That’s a credit to Chip. He’s a great coach and he pushes his kids to be the best that they can be.”
Emery says he feels “fantastic” about the way the season has gone so far, and hopes that his team will give Marblehead even more trouble when the two teams meet again in the final match of the regular season on Oct. 31.
“We learned a little bit in today’s match and we’ll try to correct some mistakes,” Emery said. “I thought there were some mental mistakes, some disorientation on the court, but other than that I really like the way they played. They didn’t give up on any balls. I can’t complain about that at all.”