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Junior Sarah Flannery, now 17, has one of her best showings in a victory over Crestwood.
DALLAS — Dallas middle hitter Sarah Flannery celebrated her 17th birthday in style – before Tuesday’s volleyball match against Crestwood.
Earlier in the day, she received a pumpkin pie and cupcakes. She arrived at the gym to discover it decorated with an assortment of birthday balloons in her honor. Before the match, she received a soft drink and a snack, compliments of a secret supporter.
And then to top it all off, the 5-foot-10 junior turned in one of the best performances of her career.
Flannery was all over the court, posting six kills, five blocks and 14 service points to help lead the Mountaineers to an impressive 3-0 victory over Crestwood in Wyoming Valley Conference action. The scores were 26-24, 25-22, 25-23.
Dallas (12-3) also got superb efforts from its other two big guns — Katrina Heintz and Shauna Phillips, who had 14 kills apiece.
Flannery said her emotions were sky-high because of her birthday falling on the same day as one of the team’s most important matches of the season, and it definitely affected her play in a positive way.
“We played well,” said Flannery, while snacking on a bag of cinnamon Teddy Grahams. “We were really fired up when we got to the gym. Both teams came out wanting to win.”
Flannery’s outstanding service play was a pivotal part of the Mountaineers’ first win over the Comets since Mike Williams took over as coach four years ago. Her rocket serves kept Crestwood off balance throughout the match.
Her ace closed out Dallas’ win in Game 2.
“We just kept putting pressure on them,” Flannery said. “However, the games just kept going back and forth.”
The lead changed hands several times in all three games. Phillips had six kills in Game 1, but Crestwood forged a 20-18 lead on a Lindsay Boone kill. Dallas drew even at 23-23 on a kill by Flannery, and prevailed 26-24 on an unforced error by the Comets.
Dallas rode the hitting of Heintz and Phillips to win Game 2. The Mountaineers took charge of Game 3 at 24-22 on a tip kill by Phillips.
“It was an awesome win,” said Phillips, who had four blocks. “We played well all the way around, and just kept going.”
Heintz, who is one of the premier players in the WVC, was on top of her game. She had several timely kills that kept Dallas in control, including three nifty slams from the back row. Defensively, she was everywhere on the court.
“Crestwood played well, but we didn’t give up,” said Heintz. “There wasn’t a moment when we let our heads get down. Shauna had an amazing game.”
The Comets (12-3) got an excellent effort from Alyssa Hartranft, who notched seven kills and seven digs.
Jen Boone and Lindsay Boone each had seven kills.
“I didn’t think our hitting was good,” said Hartranft, who played above the net. “We didn’t attack at all, and Dallas played well.”
According to Heintz, Dallas served notice it will be a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming district playoffs.
“People fear us now,” she said.