NWOAL VOLLEYBALL … Miley Gericke hits a serve for Archbold in their four-set win at Swanton.
PHOTOS BY JACOB KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
KEEPING PLAY ALIVE … Swanton’s Cara Ludlow leaps to keep the ball alive during a point in the Bulldogs’ home match versus Archbold.
By: Jesse Davis
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jesse@thevillagereporter.com
SWANTON (September 4, 2025) – The Archbold Bluestreaks came back from a heavily outscored first set to take three out of four and win in volleyball play at Swanton Thursday night.
The two teams seemed evenly matched as play began, with the score neck and neck up to a 6-6 tie as each team suffered from serve errors among a few solid attacks, as well as an ace from Bulldog sophomore Kinley Curtis.
From there, Swanton caught fire, putting together a 10-point run including a trio of kills from senior Lexi Faber and two from Curtis.
The Bulldog blockers’ ability to get fingertips in the way of spikes was a theme that kept action alive for Swanton throughout the set, giving them the opportunities they needed to rack up the points.
Archbold went on a four-point run of their own, courtesy of Bulldog errors and a solid block by seniors Autumn Benecke and Lexi Ripke to put the score at 15-10.
They would only score one more point in the set, however, coming from another Swanton fault, as the Bulldogs went on a seven-point run followed by a three-point run, including kills by sophomore Cara Ludlow, senior Madison Roytek, and Curtis to take the set 25-11.
Whatever momentum Swanton had stopped dead in the second set, which began with a shot that was deflected by a pair of Bulldogs before they all stopped and looked at one another as the ball fell to the ground without anyone attempting to return it.
Despite a four-point run courtesy exclusively of Bluestreak errors, the teams would go back and forth, tying at 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15.
Archbold then went on a four-point run, including untouched kills by junior Kennedy Hurst and senior Miley Gericke. More back-and-forth scoring ensued with the Bulldogs staying within striking distance until the Bluestreaks sealed the 25-22 victory with another untouched kill by Hurst.
Scoring remained close in the third set with Swanton maintaining a small edge as they fought to lead 7-6, when Swanton extended their lead through Bluestreak errors and a successful block at the net, but Archbold took six of the next seven points with their own solid blocking, an ace by sophomore Karly Kruse, and several kills to tie the set at 12.
The Bulldogs answered with six out of the following seven points, again due largely to Archbold errors, before the Bluestreaks went on an eight-point run via Swanton errors, a successful block, and a Hurst kill, to take the lead at 21-18. The Bulldogs were unable to recover, eventually losing the set 25-20.
Archbold took full control in the fourth set, starting with a Gericke ace and a pair of kills by freshman Molly Harris to go up 8-3.
Swanton fought back, but the Bluestreaks took 10 of the next 16 points, including two four-point runs to extend their lead to 18-9.
The Bulldogs mustered some momentum with a four-point run of their own including a pair of kills by Curtis and a tip from Ludlow to narrow the gap to 18-13.
But it would prove to be too little, too late, as Archbold marched to victory with a final serve from junior Regan Wendt that rolled over the top of the net to hit the ground untouched for a 25-16 set win and a match win of 3-1.
Archbold d. Swanton 11-25, 25-22, 25-20, 25-16
Archbold (6-1, 2-0 NWOAL): Kennedy Hurst – 10 kills, 4 blocks; Molly Harris – 9 kills; Karly Kruse – 29 assists
Swanton (5-2, 1-1 NWOAL): Kinley Curtis – 37/46 hitting, 21 kills, 11 digs; Alexa Faber – 24/28 hitting, 11 kills, 14 digs; Cara Ludlow – 69/71 setting, 25 assists, 13 digs