More from Lee-Monument volleyball
A couple of tidbits:
- Ashley Raftery's solid service was no surprise to Lee volleyball coach John Warner after Wednesday night's three-set sweep at Monument Mountain.
She's had that kind of success since the start of the season.
"Her serve percentage is somewhere between 83 and 85 percent serve-in," the coach said. "Phenomenal serve percentage. She didn't miss a serve the first three matches of the season. She has been ... very reliable. She's got depth on her serve, it's got penetration, it's a biting serve. It's one of the effective weapons we have."
- Despite staying unbeaten, Warner still sees room for improvement.
"We need to hone our blocking," he said. "As we head forth into the postseason, the offenses become much more potent. We need to establish a double block on some of the more potent hitters, and the middle block is a little late. As we progress, the speed of the hitters becomes that much faster."
- Piazzo said he wouldn't trade his current Monument team -- which has already qualified for Western Mass. tournament play -- for any other team playing right now.
"I'm very, very comfortable with this team," he said. "I really like these girls. I can't imagine them being any more tenacious. We need to work on a couple things. I'd like to find our team's Michael Jordan -- the person who can score those final points at the end of the game to put it away. That's our goal between now and the end of the season."
- In the middle of a hotly contested set, Piazzo wasn't above a little comedy. In between points, a couple of Monument players were slipping on a spot in the front row. Piazzo, who was out on the court to talk to his players during a stoppage of play, did his best to fake a slip on the spot before drying it with towels himself. That brought a decent ovation from the Monument fans in attendance.
- The Thunderstix craze apparently isn't limited to Los Angeles Angels fans (though it'd be just fine, frankly, if it was). A couple of Spartan students figured out halfway through the match that a couple of empty Mountain Dew bottles can serve as a substitute for the noisemaking props when you bang them together.
- Matthew Sprague, Eagle sports editor