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WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE — When Miami Trace is clicking on all cylinders, the Panthers are virtually impossible to beat.
Unfortunately for Chillicothe, Monday was one of those nights.
Behind a lethal combination of Addyson Butts, Lauren Guess and Lauren Farrens at the net — a trio that combined for 31 kills — Miami Trace (22-1) handed their league counterpart a 25-20, 25-20, 25-18 loss, advancing and effectively ending the Cavaliers’ season.
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
“We know that Chillicothe is a good team. They’ve continuously gotten better and better each time we’ve played them,” Butts said after the win. “So we just tried to come out with energy and intensity, just to kind of get [Chillicothe] off-balance so we get some momentum and get a lead, early.”
Butts had a night that’s been all too familiar this year.
The Panthers’ senior leader logged 16 kills to push her season total to 416 this season — with a hitting percentage of .432.
But she also got some help from her friends when Miami Trace (22-1) needed it the most.
Chillicothe (13-10) took multiple leads in the first set and shot out to an early advantage in the second. However, each time the Cavaliers seemed to have something figured out, Butts and company quickly put an end to any momentum-building runs.
“I felt like we had energy after that first set,” Farrens said. “Then, in the third, once we started going on runs, I knew we had [the win].”
In Monday’s first set, Chillicothe was the early aggressor behind Evelyn Hamman and Grace Tomlinson.
But it didn’t take long for the Panthers to counter.
After Hamman gave the Cavaliers a 6-5 lead, Tomlinson made it 8-6. That two-point edge would stand until 12-10 after Makalee Miller found an open spot on the floor.
PHOTOS: Images from Miami Trace’s district win over Chillicothe
However, Miami Trace took a 14-13 lead on an ace from setter Kylie Yeazel before going ahead 20-18 on a kill from Guess. Chillicothe did fight back to force a 20-20 tie but Farrens and Guess powered a set-ending 5-0 run to make it a 1-0 match.
“Going into the season, we knew we had to stick together as a team, on and off the court,” Farrens said. “We knew that if we wanted to go far in this tournament, then it would have to be more than just playing a game. It takes the connection that we have with each other. We’ve played together so long and that’s brought us that connection.”
More of the same took place in the second.
Hamman, Miller and Tomlinson teamed up to give the Cavaliers an early 7-3 advantage. But Butts, Farren and Guess answered with an 8-2 run to take an 11-8 lead.
The Panthers never looked back, building leads of 14-10, 17-11 and 20-16 en route to a second consecutive 25-20 win.
In the third, it was all MT.
After taking their first lead at 4-3, the Panthers went ahead 9-3 after a kill from Butts. Chillicothe fought back to cut the deficit to 10-8, but Farrens later got hot, logging back-to-back kills for an 18-13 tally.
That was more than enough momentum needed to close out a 25-18 victory and advance.
“We know the [tournament] layout is a little different this year and it feels like we have a couple of more games to get to the district [semifinal and final],” Butts said. “We’re just trying to play tough because we know every other team is just going to get better. We just want to play at the highest level we can each game.”
Statistically, Butts added three blocks and a pair of aces to her game-high 16 kills while Guess and Farrens had eight and seven kills, respectively. Farrens also added 14 digs to the mix. Yeazel finished with 27 assists, 11 digs and three aces, and Sydney Carter posted 14 digs.
Hamman also had 16 kills to pace the Cavaliers’ attack, alongside two aces and three blocks, Grace Townsend added 23 assists — putting her career total at 2,193 — and 11 digs, Tomlinson had nine kills, and Miranda McCloy and Natalie Dudley finished with 13 digs apiece.
While Chillicothe’s 2024 season comes to an end, Miami Trace advances to take on No. 2 Sheridan in a Division III district quarterfinal at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
The Generals will enter the match with a 19-3 overall mark — losses coming to Bloom-Carroll, Pickerington Central and River View — and winners of 13 straight.
“I think we just need to work to improve our offense and make it faster,” Butts said. “That’s always going to help us in the long run, especially when we get to play bigger teams. I think we just need to continue working on pushing ourselves and improving.”
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