Springs Valley Community High School

The Springs Valley volleyball team played host to Loogootee in a clash of top 10 teams on Tuesday, beating the Lions 25-20, 25-13, 25-13. The Blackhawks' sweep was fueled by an impressive all-around performance as a team. Five Blackhawks had six or more kills, six different Blackhawks had an ace, and five players had at least five digs. Springs Valley put up a team hitting percentage of .237, much better than its season average of .177. Kinsey Saliba led the 'Hawks in attack with 15 kills on 29 attempts, Maci Eckerty had one of her best performances of the season with 27 digs, 16 serve-receive passes, and a team-high three aces, and Maddie Carnes had a typical performance with 34 assists, nine digs, and seven kills, but it was Gracie Breedlove who truly stood out as an individual. The sophomore played the best game of her young career, breaking out to record a career-high seven kills on 21 attempts with just one error, giving her a quality hitting percentage of .286. Her previous career-high in kills was three. She was also active defensively with a block and a dig. Her increased involvement in the attack is a promising sign for the Blackhawks as she draws attention away from other hitters when she's a threat as well. Springs Valley (20-4, 4-0 PLAC) has now won four of its last five matches and the win over Loogootee was particularly sweet; the Lions eliminated the Blackhawks from last year's state tournament. The 'Hawks will try to keep their momentum moving forward on Thursday when they host Paoli for their annual Jam the Gym game. With a win over the Rams, they can clinch a share of their 10th consecutive Patoka Lake Athletic Conference championship.