Pilgrim falters late in first-round loss to North Smithfield

By Ryan D. Murray
Posted 11/12/15

Pilgrim came up short, 3-2, against the North Smithfield Northmen in its match at North Smithfield High School Tuesday night in the first round of the Division II girls’ volleyball playoffs. …

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Pilgrim falters late in first-round loss to North Smithfield

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Pilgrim came up short, 3-2, against the North Smithfield Northmen in its match at North Smithfield High School Tuesday night in the first round of the Division II girls’ volleyball playoffs.

The Pats jumped out to a 1-0 lead when Nancy Alvarez served and North Smithfield hit it into the net on the return. On the next play, Alvarez assisted to Emma Thibodeau, whose shot put the Pats up 2-0. The Pats increased the lead to 3-0 after Casey Aridano mishandled the return. North Smithfield scored its first point when Abbey Narodowy set up Meghan Blanchette for the kill to put North Smithfield on the board at 3-1. After North Smithfield scored again to make it 3-2, Pilgrim went off for six straight points. The rally featured a spike by Thibodeau past Blanchette and a block by Julia Conti. The Pats led 9-2. North Smithfield would cut the lead to 10-5 before Pilgrim’s Olivia King attacked with authority, hitting the ball into the campfire, making it 11-5. The Pats scored three more points to go up 14-5, before North Smithfield got its sixth point. A few plays later, Pats’ sophomore Isabel Allaire hit an ace to go up 18-8. King extended the Pats’ lead to 23-13. North Smithfield’s Caysea Anderson hit the ball into the net, giving the Pats another point. On game point, North Smithfield scored seven straight times before the Pats could notch the win. Alvarez scored the final point for the Pats and they won the first set 25-20 and took a 1-0 lead in the match.

Alvarez made a lot of impressive diving plays throughout the night to keep her team in the match.

“Nancy’s fantastic,” Pilgrim head coach Kelly Harrington said. “We’re lucky to have her. She’s a valuable part of our team. She always plays to a high level.”

In the second set, North Smithfield came alive. After Thibodeau returned Narodowy’s serve for a 1-0 Pats lead, North Smithfield’s Shannon Moran blocked Thibodeau on the next play to tie the score at 1. King responded with a block of her own, which landed for a score and the Pats took a 3-2 edge. On the next serve, Ana Alvarez hit to North Smithfield and Lorenza O’Donnell and Anderson failed to make a return. Ana Alvarez served again, and again North Smithfield hit it into the net. The Pats went up 6-2 before North Smithfield came back to tie it at 6. The teams traded points before O’Donnell dumped it to the left side in front of the net, putting North Smithfield up 8-7. Next, Blanchette blocked Anderson to increase the lead to 10-8. But the Pats would come back to tie it at 10 before taking a 13-10 lead. However, the lead wouldn’t last long. Narodowy assisted to Rebecca Majeau who scored pulling North Smithfield to 13-11. North Smithfield would score three straight times to take a 14-13 lead. After Ana Alvarez miscued a return on the next play, North Smithfield went up 16-14. The Pats pulled it to 16-15 before the teams got tied up at 18. The teams went back and forth until North Smithfield took a 22-19 lead. North Smithfield went on to win 25-21 after Blanchette and Majeau combined for a double block before Narodowy spiked it for the win. The match was tied at 1-1.

In the third set, North Smithfield jumped out to a 7-4 lead. Then, the Pats scored five straight points to take a 9-7 lead. After North Smithfield took a timeout to regroup, it tied the score at 9, when O’Donnell hit it into the campfire. North Smithfield continued the momentum and increased the lead to 14-10. The Pats’ Meaghan Woodbury came through with back-to-back serves that resulted in points pulling the Pats to 15-14.  After both teams scored a point, North Smithfield scored four straight points to go up 20-15. King hit an ace to pull Pilgrim to 21-18 and after a North Smithfield point, Nancy Alvarez assisted to Woodbury to make it 22-19. The Pats scored two more times to cut the lead to 22-21, but then Allaire’s next serve would go out of bounds. Nancy Alvarez and Woodbury had a double block that scored to cut the lead to 23-22. After North Smithfield’s return went out of bounds, the set was tied at 23 apiece. But North Smithfield’s Shannon Moran would hit it past a diving Emily Sayles to go up 24-23. On game point, Narodowy served and Nancy Alvarez set up Conti, but her shot hit the net to end the set, giving North Smithfield the 25-23 win and a 2-1 advantage.

In the fourth set, the Pats scored first, but on the next serve, Woodbury’s return went into the net. Then, Anderson hit it into the gap and put North Smithfield up 2-1. Next, Nancy Alvarez set up Thibodeau for the attack and tied it at 2. The teams would rally back and forth before Pilgrim’s Allaire hit an ace to give the Pats an 8-7 lead. But, on the next serve, Allaire would hit it into the net, tying the game again. Woodbury’s next serve skimmed the net before landing for a point to put the Pats up 12-10. However, her next serve would hit the net. North Smithfield went up 15-13 before King’s kill cut the lead to one point. Then, with the score tied at 15, Allaire came through for the Pats, dropping a shot in front for a point and giving the Pats a 16-15 lead. Then, Narodowy would tie it at 17. A big block by Thibodeau increased the Pats’ lead to 19-17. Then, Nancy Alvarez hit it into the campfire to put the Pats up 21-19. The Pats got hot and went up 23-19 lead, before Nancy Alvarez assisted to Conti, who nailed home a point for a 24-19 lead. The Pats tried to win on their game point attempt, but failed. However, on North Smithfield’s next serve, Majeau hit it into the net, ending the set and giving the Pats a 25-20 win to tie the match at 2.

The fifth and final set would feature a long rally between the teams, before Woodbury’s shot hit the net. King came back for the Pats with a slam with authority to tie it at 1. The Pats scored again with a spike, as Conti gave Pilgrim a 2-1 lead. O’Donnell would sneak it past the Pats to tie it at 3. Then, North Smithfield scored three points in a row to go up 6-3. The Pats battled back to 7-6 when Woodbury’s spike landed for a point. Then, the Pats tied it at 7 when Nancy Alvarez and Allaire combined for a double block. Woodbury would slam another one home to put the Pats up 8-7. After a block from Woodbury, the Pats led 9-7. But Conti’s next serve would float out of bounds and North Smithfield battled back to tie it at 9. Then, North Smithfield used the momentum and closed out the match with six straight points to win 15-9.

Despite the loss, Harrington was pleased with the way her team battled.

“They put in their best effort,” Harrington said. “We worked hard for every point and unfortunately we just came up short a little bit in game five.” 

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