The last time the Lake Placid and Northern Adirondack volleyball teams faced each other was nearly a year and a half ago when the Bobcats took down the Blue Bombers on Nov. 12, 2019 in the Section VII, Class D title match.

On Monday, the Blue Bombers, and especially their seniors, got the chance to take bit of pain away from that loss with a 3-1 victory over NAC on the Bobcats’ court.

Lake Placid won by 25-14, 15-25, 25-12 and 25-12 scores.

After starting off the season with a loss, the Blue Bombers have won two straight to improve to 2-1 in an eight-match, Fall II season.

As the only Class D schools playing volleyball in Section VII, the two teams have had quite a rivalry over the years. Normally they would face each other twice during the regular season and then battle it out in the Class D championship match. With no playoff round this time around, Lake Placid coach Sandy Huber said Tuesday’s victory was special.

“Even though there are no sectionals, it was a pretty big deal,” Huber said. “They beat us last time, it was for the championship, and I think there was still a little sting left from that. Our girls are feeling a whole lot better.”

Four Lake Placid seniors who were on the team two seasons ago had standout performances against NAC in a match that saw the Blue Bombers get the better of the Bobcats when it came to serving. Three of those seniors — Izzy Armstrong, Grace Crawford and Dylan Bashaw — combined for 42 points and 22 aces in the win.

Crawford led the way with 17 points and 9 aces, Armstrong added 13 points and 7 aces, and Bashaw had a strong effort all-around with 12 points, 6 aces, 5 kills, 9 digs and 9 assists. Although Huber said that Karis Hudson, the fourth senior in that group, didn’t have big numbers on the score sheet, she still played a key role in the victory.

“Karis really does an amazing job running our defense,” Huber said. “She really takes charge of making sure we are where we need to be.”

Julia Crawford, a sophomore, paced Lake Placid at the net with 9 kills.

The Blue Bombers will look to claim their third win in a row today when they travel to take on the Plattsburgh Hornets.

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Red Storm sweep at Saranac

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Saranac Lake’s volleyball team got into the win column Monday with a 3-0 road victory against Saranac Central.

The Red Storm swept by 25-19, 25-12 and 25-21 scores.

After dropping their first two contests by mostly close scores, Red Storm coach Mike Navarra said the team has shifted its focus a bit for the rest of the season to focusing on getting team members playing time and building for the future. In winning for the first time in three matches, Saranac Lake was able to get all 16 players in the lineup time on the court.

“Nice to break through with that first win,” Navarra said. “The girls were happy, but I think they were more excited that I told them you can make all the mistakes in the world — you just have to get at it and not be hesitant. I think knowing that took some of the stress off them.”

Azra Michael led Saranac Lake’s servers with 7 points and 3 aces. Alison Hewitt paced the winners on defense with 15 digs and Georgia Bickford added eight digs. Sydney Leeret had 5 assists and three players — Anica Null, Mia Sanford and Kelsey Leeret — chipped in at the net with 3 kills each.

Saranac Lake will next be at home Thursday against AuSable Valley.