Prep volleyball: BCS rallies to knock off ODA

SARASOTA — It’s the simplest of things, yet the Bradenton Christian girls volleyball team had trouble with it.

Then, all of a sudden, the Panthers started limiting the serving errors and found the empty court.

BCS used the newfound attack to defeat rival Out-of-Door Academy 3-2 on Tuesday night at the Petrik Thunderdome.

“You can’t get any rallies going if you miss your serve,” Panthers head coach Greg Geraldson said. “Especially the first one.”

Geraldson had to shuffle his lineup a bit because Ashley Deal and Abi Van Ostenbridge were out with injuries.

They are the squad’s normal setters, which meant a new rotation against the Thunder.

It didn’t seem to bother senior Maria DeKuiper and junior Chynna Ratner as the duo had a game-high 16 and 15 kills, respectively.

“Chynna usually plays left and she had to play middle,” DeKuiper said. “So, she did a really good job ... our setter has a shoulder problem. Ashley Deal hurt her shoulder about a week ago, so she couldn’t play tonight. And she’s usually my opposite, but Chynna had to step up, and she did a good job.”

The teams alternated wins with the Thunder capturing Games 1 and 3 before dropping the last two.

ODA won 25-17 in Game 1. The Panthers tied it up 25-15 in Game 2.

The Thunder bounced back with a 25-23 victory in the third game.

Then, despite committing 14 errors for the second straight game, BCS edged ODA 25-21 in the fourth game.

That left a pivotal Game 5, which BCS captured 15-10.

“He told us to communicate and not let any balls drop,” DeKuiper said about Geraldson’s message before the last game.

Both Geraldson and Thunder head coach Julio Cruz called timeouts during Game 4 that thwarted the momentum.

However, the real rally killer was a lifting violation called against ODA that clinched the fourth game for BCS. Two more lifting calls went against the Thunder during Game 5.

“They’re not really lifting calls,” Cruz said. “When you attack the ball in front of you, it’s technically not a lift. (The referee) is saying that’s a lift, they hold the ball too long. And I’ve been in volleyball for over 22 years, and if you attack the ball from the chest out, it’s a lift. But if you attack the ball in front of you with arms extended, there’s no way that could be a lift. So, it might be that the association needs to revise whatever tape they make the referees watch, because it’s not accurate.”

ODA’s Audra Pack had a team-high 12 kills, while teammates Kate Douglas (10 kills) and captain Rachel Cannon (nine kills) chipped in.