Taconic Earns Season Sweep of Pittsfield

PITTSFIELD, Mass. – Taconic sophomore Aliyah DelSonno served four straight points early in the fourth set to give the Thunder a 6-1 lead.

 

Later in the set, she got the ball back with her team ahead 23-22 and served out the match.

 

DelSonno finished with four aces and seven digs as Taconic earned a season sweep of Pittsfield with a 16-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-22 win.

 

“Her serving has been amazing lately,” Taconic coach Lance Fyfe said. “I’ve been subbing her in for our outside hitter, who also has a really good serve. So, they’re both putting pressure on me now. They both want to serve.

 

“I stayed with Aliyah all night, and I don’t think she had a single bad serve. Really nice, powerful, consistently in. Love it.”

 

Lacey Daly and Janayah Jones finished with seven and six kills, respectively, and Ella Stodden had a double-double with 15 digs and 25 assists as Taconic improved to 9-4 with its fourth straight win, a streak that started with another four-set win over the Generals.

 

Pittsfield did not make this one easy for its cross-city rival.

 

After Taconic jumped out to a 7-1 lead on a Daly kill in the first set, the Generals fought their way back into the set, eventually taking their first lead on Sadie Aitken’s kill to make it 12-11.

 

A couple of sideouts later, Camila Sebastian got the serve with her team up, 13-12, and served six straight points – including an ace and an Amanda Pou kill – to get the margin to 19-12.

 

Pou (five kills, three aces) eventually closed out the set with four straight points, the last on a kill from Marley Perras (five kills).

 

Taconic came back and built a three-point lead in the second set when Jones delivered a kill for a side out and a 14-10 lead.

 

“She’s exciting,” Fyfe said of Taconic’s kills leader this season with 77. “She’s actually playing with a sore shoulder, so I was a little bit worried about that. But she worked through it. She said she was OK, so I was like, ‘I’m taking your word for it.’

 

“And she played great. She had some great hits.”

 

Off the side out, Sophie Aubin (10 digs, team-high six aces) served four straight points to give Taconic an 18-10 lead it never relinquished in cruising to a 10-point win to even the match.

 

DelSonno’s first big service run of the match came in the third set.

 

She took the ball with her team trailing, 6-2, and did not give it up until Taconic had an 8-7 lead.

 

Pittsfield regained the lead thanks to a three-point run by Angelina Pierce that featured a couple of aces to make it 11-9.

 

But Taconic came right back with three points on Stodden’s serve, the last on a kill from Jadyn Galliher (four kills, 13 digs) to take the lead for good.

 

DelSonno later served a couple more points to put Taconic up, 23-17.

 

A kill by Natalia Dos Santos (16 digs, three kills) ended the set moments later, putting Taconic up, 3-2.

 

The deciding set was a dog fight after DelSonno gave Taconic an early lead.

 

The Generals battled their way back into the set, tying it five times – the last at 22-22 after a tip at the net by Pou for a side out.

 

But Daly got a kill on the next point to regain the serve for DelSonno, who delivered an ace to get to match point, which Taconic immediately cashed in.

 

Hailey Rumlow had a match-high nine kills for Pittsfield.

 

“She is one of my senior captains and is one of my key players returning,” Pittsfield coach Katara Mullett said of Rumlow. “She went out about two weeks ago with a pulled abdominal muscle. She came back this past Saturday against Mount Anthony. She was kind of easing herself back into it, hoping to be fully back tonight.

 

“She’s still not 100 percent, but she definitely helped us out a lot with some of her plays from the outside.

 

Pittsfield (5-9) is at Wahconah on Wednesday.

 

Taconic Thursday hosts Monument Mountain with a chance for the Thunder to pick up its 10th win and a berth in the state tournament.