By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Proving the worn-out proverb – everybody has heard “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish” – to be timelessly correct, Bedford North Lawrence closed better than it opened.
Trailing early in the first two sets, locked in a tight battle in the third, the Stars flicked the switch when necessary, completing a sweep of Martinsville on Monday night. With lengthy service runs at critical junctures, BNL rebounded from a disappointing road trip with a positive performance that featured its best work in the closing moments of each set.
With 12 aces as propellant, the Stars rolled to a 25-18, 25-21, 25-14 victory over the Artesians (8-11). Sparked by junior Amelia Lawmaster off the bench, who contributed big points in each surge, BNL started a busy week with a solid win.
“I’m glad we got out of here,” BNL coach Aaron Wagoner said. “There’s a tendency to get comfortable, in the wrong way, and we do that a lot. You never know which team will show up.”
That was true from point to point in each set. Down 4-0 to start the first, BNL turned momentum with nine straight points with Adalynn Bailey at the service line. Down 3-0 to begin the second, the Stars went on a run to take the lead midway through the set and pulled away late. In the third, the Stars scored nine of the last 10 points to close out the sweep.
“I’d rather be that way,” Wagoner said.
Truth be told, he’d rather be both, fast starters and closers. Bailey turned the first set with her service monopoly, then Lawmaster cracked back-to-back aces for a 17-10 advantage. Izzy Root capped the set with a soft push kill and a blistering spike to punctuate a long rally for the final point.
In the second, Martinsville scrapped within 16-15 when BNL surged again. Emry Crane started it with a kill, Lily Wagoner whacked a service ace, Allen added one of her own, and Lawmaster cracked a spike off a block. Lily Mishler tipped down an errant Martinsville pass at the net to finish the flurry.
Root served five consecutive points for a 21-13 lead late in the third, and points from Crane (a block kill at the net) and Lawmaster (another ace) capped it off.
Root paced the offense with 10 kills, Mishler totaled eight, and Crane added four kills and three blocks. But the key stat was from the back row, with Wagoner (three aces, 12 digs), Lawmaster (four aces) and Allen (three aces) doing good work. Bailey shook off a calf cramp to record 22 assists and nine digs.
“It’s energy,” Lawmaster explained. “We were able to pick it back up. We were down, but we were able to go on a couple of service runs and get back out of it. We’re all one team in unison, so bringing energy off the bench is very important, being able to help a teammate, something simple can help the team.”
After a 1-3 road trip to Noblesville on Saturday, BNL certainly needed to bounce back.
“I thought we could have beaten those teams,” Wagoner said. “I was a little disappointed, so it was nice to come back with a win.”
The Stars will host Columbus East on Tuesday.
