Campbell falls to Lakeview in straight sets
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CORTLAND -- On the eve of a likely league title decider, Campbell came up short for just the second time this season.
The Red Devils, despite promising starts to the first and second sets, faded down the stretch and were beaten by Lakeview, another of the top teams in the area, in straight sets.
"I thought we played pretty well at times," Campbell head coach Tyler Allen said. "Very tough team. Lakeview's really good, tall, great defense, great attack, great serve, great serve-receive. I thought we played against them pretty well. This is a game we wanted to prepare us for the postseason. There are a few times where we didn’t play our game or we let them go on some runs that we have to do a little bit better job at. We’re getting better, we’re getting the mindset where it needs to be, but it kind of reverted to where we were a couple years ago. We were able to get out of it, but by the time we were able to get out of it, it was too late."
The Devils jumped out to a 9-5 lead early in the first set, but the Bulldogs responded forcefully, winning 13 of the next 14 points to take a 18-10 lead and force Allen to use both timeouts moments apart.
During the second timeout, the Campbell players walked to the sideline, only to be sent back out on the court and brought back to the sideline with more energy.
"That was more of an effort thing," Allen said. "Just walking back -- we don’t do the walking. We’re working for everything that we want. We have to earn everything that we get. And when we’re walking on the court, that’s just not a good sign, not something good to show the other team, not something good to show our teammates. Just something that we really pride ourselves on: outworking other teams and just pushing ourselves no matter what the circumstances are, whether you’re up by 10, down by 10, tie game."
Although the timeout had a short-term positive effect, as the Devils won four of the next five points, Lakeview rattled off four straight points to pull ahead 23-14. Despite a similar run by Campbell, the Bulldogs closed the set with back-to-back points to win 25-18.
Neither team created much separation halfway through the second set and went to a Lakeview timeout tied at 10. After the break, however, the Bulldogs, much like the first set, pulled away.
After winning 10 consecutive points, Lakeview rattled off a few with Campbell before clinching the set 25-14.
"There are a couple instances in the first two sets where, again, we just let them get the momentum and run with it," Allen said. "Instead of us making some good plays and controlling the ball and putting the ball away, I think we made some poor decisions. But again, I think they made a lot of good plays as well. It’s hard when you’re playing a good team like that. You can’t give them a free ball because they just control the ball so well, and they can just get to their attack on their offense. Super hard to defend."
Buoyed by their enormous momentum, the Bulldogs controlled the third set from its opening. They jumped out ahead 12-4, and despite a few Campbell runs, including a late rally, never let the Devils back within five points as they won the third set 25-18.
With its seventh in a row, Lakeview improved to 15-3 on the season. The Bulldogs, who are 8-2 in Northeast 8 Conference (NE8) play, host Niles today.
Monday's defeat snapped an eight-match winning streak and marked Campbell's second loss this year. The only other blemish on the Devils' record was a 3-2 loss to Mineral Ridge, which Campbell hosts tonight in what will likely decide who wins the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Scarlet Tier crown this season.
"We played really well," Allen said of the Sept. 10 loss to the Rams. "Again, little mistakes here and there, little decisions -- we probably could've made smarter decisions, cost us that game. But again, we played at a high level. Today, we played at a high level in a big game. ... Conference championship's on the line. It’s not gonna be clinched there, but we can't get to where we wanna be in that aspect without tomorrow. So it’s a big game, we’re excited for it. We've got a rebound from this. It’s not about wins and losses. It’s about getting better every game. And I think that’s the mindset our girls have. And I think they’re ready for tomorrow."