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York​ Wildcats Fall ⁤to Washington Academy in Class B ⁢Volleyball Championship

AUGUSTA, Maine – The York Wildcats volleyball ⁤team saw their championship run end Saturday with a 3-2 loss to Washington Academy in the Maine Class⁢ B ⁤championship game. ⁢Despite a resilient comeback, York was ⁢ultimately defeated after a hard-fought ‍battle at the Augusta Civic⁢ center.

York ​Head Coach Michael Hill⁤ acknowledged the match’s⁣ difficulty. “It was going to be a tough match,” Hill said. “We had a lot of holes that we fell into early,and we⁤ were able to climb out of them and able to ‍get it to a ​fifth set.”

York forced ‍a ⁤decisive fifth set after facing a challenging match.Hill explained ‌the team focused on chipping away at deficits to reach a fifth-and-deciding set. “We were ⁢able to find the strength to hammer thru it,” Hill said. “It’s such a momentum game,and as ‌soon ⁢as the momentum shifted,we took that fourth set and rode‌ it ​out all the way to​ the end ⁢of the fifth.”

The fourth set​ saw Washington Academy ⁤initially leading 12-6 ​before York rallied with‍ six​ consecutive​ points to ‍tie the set⁢ at 12-12.The teams traded points, reaching ‌22-22, then ⁢Washington Academy gained game point at 24-23. york battled back to 24-24,‌ and after​ another Washington Academy ​point, ⁤a ‌serve ​went long, tying​ it at 25-25.‍ York then⁣ took a 26-25 lead, ultimately winning the set on a block by Sophie coite that ricocheted⁤ off⁣ a Washington player.”we stayed​ strong in the head and climbed our ⁣way out, and​ we just missed ‌it at the end,”⁢ Hill said.

York won the first set‍ 25-23, overcoming an early 8-2⁤ deficit that prompted a timeout from Hill. however, ⁢Washington Academy controlled the second⁣ and third sets, despite York starting the third set with a 5-2 lead. ‍

Hill credited Washington Academy’s strategic ⁢play. ⁤”They did a great job of spreading the ball around and utilizing all ⁣of its hitters,as well as putting ‍the ball in tough ​spots that York had to scramble for,” he said. “I think one thing‌ (Washington) realized about us​ is that⁢ if they let us hit the ball, we were going⁤ to score a lot of points. They really put the ball in tough spots, made our defense ⁣scramble and really limited our⁣ ability to put the ball away.”