PEABODY — In one of its most back-and-forth matches of the entire season, the No. 15 Peabody volleyball team outlasted No. 19 Quincy by a score of 3-1 in the Division 1 North tournament Round of 32 Thursday evening at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School. The Tanners won by set scores of 25-21, 25-21, 22-25, 25-18.
“It was a great match, and Quincy really played hard and pushed us the whole time,” said Peabody coach Lisa Keene, who was named NEC Coach of the Year earlier this week. “I’m just proud of the girls for how they continue to fight and how they really finished it off once they got the chance in that fourth set.”
Isabel Bettencourt had a big game for the Tanners with 13 kills and five aces, while Lauryn Mendonca notched a season-high six blocks. Sarah Broughton had 18 service points and six kills, while Abby Bettencourt had 26 assists and four kills. Kristina Cardello had a massive game in the back with 30 digs, while Maddie Castro had a season-high six kills.
“Everyone played so well and played their role so perfectly it was a great team effort,” said Keene. “Lauren was pumped up to play in a game like this and she really did well at the net, Bo (Isabel) did a great job in all facets, Abby was a great facilitator and Krissy had a great game on the back line.”
The Tanners got off to a slow start in the opening set, falling behind an inspired Quincy squad 10-4 in the opening minutes. But Peabody eventually was able to right the ship, and the Tanners rallied all the way back to tie the score at 14-14. Peabody took the lead there and never gave it up, surviving a late Quincy rally to win the set 25-21.
Peabody flipped the script on Quincy in the second set, sprinting out to an early lead before stretching that lead to 14-4. Although Quincy battled all the way back to get within three, the Tanners were able to hold onto the lead and coast to the 25-21 victory.
The Presidents got back on track a bit in the third set, keeping Peabody off balance for the majority of the frame. Quincy eventually stretched the lead to 18-11, and despite a late Tanners rally the Presidents were able to take the 25-22 set win to keep the match alive.
The majority of the fourth set was a back-and-forth affair, with nine ties and 10 lead changes throughout. But, with the score tied 16-16, Peabody went on a run at the perfect time and outscored Quincy 9-2 to win the set and take the match.
Peabody (16-4) now moves on to the Div. 1 Round of 16, where the Tanners will face off against either No. 3 North Andover or No. 30 Taunton at a date and time to be determined.
“It’ll be a tough battle either way, but we face North Andover in the first game of the season and we’ve grown a lot since then,” said Keene. “I’m sure they’ve grown up a lot too and I’m sure it’s going to be a great game no matter who we go up against. We just need to play a game and continue to work together.”