(GILBERT, Ariz.) Varsity volleyball (10-2, 5-1 3A Metro) rallied from two sets down in a best of five series to upset Scottsdale Christian 3-2 (16-25, 19-25, 25-22, 26-24, 15-12) Thursday evening on GCS Middle School Night. Junior Alexia Heyn was an offensive powerhouse in the contest, logging a team-high 21 kills, while sophomore Sienna Cathey smashed 19 of her own to bolster the Knights' formidable attack.
Heyn and Cathey also combined for seven of the team's nine aces on the day.
Defensively, no one came close to libero Shay Loth, who laid everything on the back-line, to register a season-best 22 digs for GCHS. Loth has a whopping 210 digs in her inaugural campaign as a Knight.
The block did its job at the net, with seniors Kaila Aston and Kiersa Lloyd leading the roofers' union to compile four block-assists apiece against the Eagles.
Freshman setter Kendall Moore, the only Moore that mattered on Thursday, played an excellent all-around game for the Knights, dishing 25 assists while tallying a pair of aces, six digs and a block-assist.
Also integral in the hard-fought victory was junior Sidney Loth, who notched a double-double in the other-half of the GCHS setting rotation, with 22 assists and 10 digs.
The Eagles drop to 9-2 with the loss.
Gilbert Christian has won nine of its last ten matches, with its only defeat coming on the road last week against region-leader, Northwest Christian (11-1, 6-0 3A Metro).
On Wednesday, the Knights took a trip to San Tan Foothills, where the team made easy work of the Sabercats, winning 25-10, 25-9, 25-6. Heyn and Cathey once again led the charge offensively, with ten and nine kills, respectively, in the three-set sweep.
Heyn's service game was also premiere in the match, as she somehow managed nearly as many aces as she did kills, recording eight to lead all players. Cathey, for her part, wasn't far off the leader-spot with seven aces and a 93.3% accuracy rating.
With just six contests remaining on the regular-season docket, the Knights take a hard-earned rest for Fall break.
The team will return to action on October 16th (6:00pm) at Bourgade Catholic. Gilbert Christian swept the Golden Eagles on September 23th at home.
-GO KNIGHTS-
