Payne and Graham Combine for Nine Blocks as Mt. Olive Sweeps Litchfield 2-0

LITCHFIELD, Ill. — Mt. Olive turned the net into a wall Monday night, getting nine total blocks from sophomores Whitney Payne and Alena Graham in a 2-0 non-conference road sweep of Litchfield on Oct. 5.

The Wildcats improved to 13-6 with the two-set win, while the Purple Panthers fell to 6-14.

Mt. Olive never let Litchfield settle into a rhythm at the net. Payne put up a match-best five solo blocks in two sets, and Graham added four more, giving the Wildcats 13 total blocks as a team against just three for the hosts. Payne was efficient on the attack as well, converting three kills on five swings for a .400 hitting percentage, while Graham chipped in three kills, 10 digs and the Wildcats’ lone service ace across 15 serve attempts.

Senior Chloe Green led Mt. Olive with four kills on eight attempts, hitting .375, and backed it with 11 digs and six serve receptions. Junior Melody Vazzi carried the heaviest attacking load, taking 18 swings for three kills with only one error, and she matched that with 10 digs and a team-high nine serve receptions.

Setting duties belonged to sophomore Libby Knes, who distributed 12 assists on 30 ball-handling attempts without an error and added a kill on two swings, four digs and a block assist. Senior Jill Kosowski contributed two assists, a kill and a solo block.

The Wildcats’ back row did the rest. Junior Marrisa Bono led all players with 14 digs, part of a 50-dig team effort that more than doubled Litchfield’s 22. That defense kept Mt. Olive in long rallies even as the Wildcats worked through a choppy offensive night, finishing with 15 kills and 10 attack errors on 55 attempts for a .091 clip.

Litchfield had its own attacking star. Senior Amari Vickery was the Purple Panthers’ primary weapon, hammering a match-high 10 kills while adding five digs and a team-best 10 serve receptions. Senior setter Leighton Warchol ran the offense with 16 assists and chased down six digs. Juniors Jada Carroll and senior Lexi Logan added three kills apiece, and junior Allison Belusko posted two kills in her single set of action.

The margin, though, came down to the error column and the block. Litchfield’s 21 kills were offset by 18 attack errors, and with Payne and Graham repeatedly shutting down swings at the pins, the Purple Panthers struggled to string together points. Senior Kyndal Law and junior Samantha Rieke each served an ace, and Law added nine serve receptions and five digs, but Litchfield’s three total blocks were no answer for Mt. Olive’s 13.

Sophomore Kyleigh Zhang recorded two of those blocks for the hosts, with Carroll adding the other.

Mt. Olive’s win was its 13th of the season, pushing the Wildcats seven games over .500 with the postseason approaching.

Game Summary

Score by Sets

Individual set scores were not included in the available MaxPreps data.

Individual Statistics

MT. OLIVE (13-6)

KILLS: Chloe Green 4 (8 att, 1 E, .375); Alena Graham 3 (13 att, 4 E); Melody Vazzi 3 (18 att, 1 E, .111); Whitney Payne 3 (5 att, 1 E, .400); Jill Kosowski 1 (6 att, 0 E, .167); Libby Knes 1 (2 att, 0 E, .500). Team: 15 K, 10 E, 55 att, .091

ASSISTS: Libby Knes 12 (30 BHA, 0 BHE); Jill Kosowski 2. Team: 14

SERVING: Alena Graham 1 ace, 15 SA, 11 pts; Chloe Green 10 SA, 1 SE, 6 pts; Melody Vazzi 7 SA, 5 pts; Libby Knes 7 SA, 4 pts; Marrisa Bono 8 SA, 4 pts; Whitney Payne 4 SA, 1 SE, 2 pts. Team: 1 ace

BLOCKING: Whitney Payne 5 (5 BS); Alena Graham 4 (4 BS); Melody Vazzi 2 (2 BA); Jill Kosowski 1 (1 BS); Libby Knes 1 (1 BA). Team: 13 total blocks

DIGS: Marrisa Bono 14; Chloe Green 11; Alena Graham 10; Melody Vazzi 10; Libby Knes 4; Whitney Payne 1. Team: 50

SERVE RECEIVING: Melody Vazzi 9; Alena Graham 6; Chloe Green 6 (1 RE); Marrisa Bono 5 (1 RE); Jill Kosowski 2; Mattie Marburger 0 (1 RE)

LITCHFIELD (6-14)

KILLS: Amari Vickery 10 (6 E); Jada Carroll 3 (6 E); Lexi Logan 3 (3 E); Allison Belusko 2; Leighton Warchol 1; Kyleigh Zhang 1 (1 E); Jennah Longwell 1 (2 E). Team: 21 K, 18 E

ASSISTS: Leighton Warchol 16 (2 BHE); Amari Vickery 1. Team: 17

SERVING: Kyndal Law 1 ace; Samantha Rieke 1 ace; Amari Vickery 2 SE; Lexi Logan 1 SE. Team: 2 aces

BLOCKING: Kyleigh Zhang 2 (2 BS); Jada Carroll 1 (1 BS, 1 BE); Allison Belusko 1 BE; Leighton Warchol 1 BE. Team: 3 total blocks

DIGS: Leighton Warchol 6; Kyndal Law 5; Amari Vickery 5; Samantha Rieke 3; Lexi Logan 2; Jada Carroll 1. Team: 22

SERVE RECEIVING: Amari Vickery 10 (1 RE); Kyndal Law 9; Samantha Rieke 7; Lexi Logan 6