ACCIDENT — Frankfort came out ice cold at The Igloo Monday, and Northern made them pay.
The Huskies were sharp at the onset and cruised to a 2-0 lead with the Falcons winning just 28 points over the first two games. Frankfort picked up the pace in the ensuing two highly competitive stanzas, but the early hole left little margin for error.
Top-ranked Northern used a 10-3 flurry in the fourth game to secure the match victory, cementing its position at the top of the area with a 25-15, 25-13, 23-25, 25-19 triumph over No. 2 Frankfort on Monday night.
“They played really well. I was really impressed,” Northern head coach Jamie Bailey said. “Except for the third match when they seemed to get out of sync and play as six individuals instead of a team. We lost the momentum, so the third game was a little closer.”
The victory upped Northern’s record to 10-2 and kept the Huskies on pace to grab the top seed in Class 1A West Region I.
Northern, Fort Hill (10-2) and Hancock (9-2) are the only remaining teams in the region with fewer than three losses. The Huskies can drop Hancock from that threshold when the teams battle in Washington County on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Frankfort’s defeat was its first locally of the season, as the Falcons (19-11-1) swept Keyser twice, Hampshire, Mountain Ridge and Allegany once and defeated Hampshire, 3-1, and Calvary, 3-2.
Marisa Perez played her usual game as Northern’s distributor tallying 14 assists, but her serving lifted the Huskies to a Game 1 victory. She had eight service points, four aces in the set, and finished with six aces to go along with six kills and two blocks.
“She used to be a wild cannon with her serves,” Bailey said of Perez, who finished with a double-double. “Lately, I think she’s really realized how important a killer serve is. She’s really been focusing on being able to place it where she wants it.”
Allahna Lacy was Northern’s top hitter with eight kills and five blocks, and Samara Streets added seven kills. Maddi Hook anchored the Huskies’ defense.
Frankfort led 5-3 in the opening game but was never in contention again after a 7-0 Northern response. The Falcons looked disjointed again in the second period.
Much of the slow start could be attributed to Frankfort’s reintroduction of two starters to its lineup who were unable to play last week due to an illness.
“We knew coming up here that Northern is a really good team, and we’re a really good team,” Frankfort head coach Brooke Alkire-Higson said. “Unfortunately for us, I failed them. We weren’t ready. We had kids in there that hadn’t been in there all week, and I failed them.
“We played multiple games without them in there. It’s not an excuse, it’s just reality. … We weren’t ready for it, and volleyball is very much a game of routine and getting comfortable in areas.”
The third game produced the match’s highest level by both sides. Down 17-13, Northern embarked on a 5-1 run to draw even. The score was level at 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23.
A pair of nervy errors gave Frankfort a 25-23 game win to force a fourth period, but the hitting of Lacy and the serving of Perez pushed Northern over the top.
Northern won the junior varsity match. Cali Butler paced the Huskies with five kills, six assists and an ace.
While Northern will hope the momentum from Monday and a 3-1 victory at Class A title contender East Hardy (17-4) last week carries into its match at Hancock, Frankfort looks to have a short memory when it hosts Moorefield on Thursday at 7:15 p.m.
The Falcons are currently positioned in a tie for No. 6 in the Class AAA state coaches poll and have their sights on a return to the state tournament.
“Anytime you’re playing against a good team, you’re getting better, you’re learning new things and you’re playing together,” Alkire-Higson said. “We just want to play better against those good teams.
“Our third set, we looked more like us, but we still never fell into a groove that I feel is our typical showing of confidence.”