Gowanda Small Town Times

[photo] Ella Luther lines up on the ball for a dig during the Gowanda Volleyball home opener against Falconer.

With the Gowanda High School gym still taped off from the Summer resurfacing project, the first Gowanda home action of the 2023 Fall sports season was shifted to the middle School gym. The Gowanda Varsity Lady Panthers hosted a very strong group of Frewsburg Lady Golden Falcons on August 31.

Gowanda got off to a slow start in the opening game of the match. After gaining the first point of the game on a Falconer missed serve, Gowanda slid into a 1-3 hole. The game was tied at 5 and again at 8 before Gowanda took their first, and only, lead in the game. They managed to pull in front 12-8 before sliding back into a tie at 13. From there Falconer moved in front 24-17 and held on for a 25-18 Game 1 win.

While Game 2 started out a bit tighter, Gowanda was behind until the score was again tied at 5-5 on the way to a brief lead at 6-5. Falconer surged back to take a 12-7 lead. From there the battle remained tight with Gowanda only able to close the gap to four points at 11-15. Falconer held on to take Game 2 by a score of 25-19.

Things looked bleak at first in Game 3 as Gowanda gave up the first seven points. The score was 3-9 when Gowanda went on a 6-point run, with Corrina John serving, to tie things at 9. Frewsburg again moved into a slim lead. The game was tied at 13 and 15 before Gowanda began to take control of the game. Though a series of long hard fought volleys the Lady Panther moved into a 21-18 lead. The gap would thin to 23-22 before Gowanda got their first game win of the year at 25-22. The final point of the game was scored on a Holland Browning ace.

Still down 2-1 in the match, the Lady Panthers found new life in Game 4. After dropping the first point, Gowanda surged into a 4-1 lead. Frewsburg answered tying the score at four as they moved into a short-lived 7-4 lead. The battle continued to be very competitive with frequent long volleys. Gowanda tied the game at 7. Falconer held on, with Gowanda holding a thin lead, to even things again at 11. While Frewsburg was unable to regain a lead, the scored was tied at 18, 19 and 20. Gowanda scored the next three points, including an Addison Kota ace, to take control 23-20. The Lady Panthers held on to tie the match at 2-2 with a 25-21 win.

Gowanda sputtered as the final game started falling into a quick 1-5 hole. Despite being able to close the score to 8-10, Gowanda was not able to avoid a 10-15 loss in the game to fall short in the match 2-3.

Aubrie Heron led Gowanda with 12 kills, 2 points and a block. Other prominent players for Gowanda included Corrina John (10 kills, 12 blocks), Ella Luther (17 digs), Addison Kota (3 aces, 5 kills, 3 assists), Jillian Gernatt (35 assists), Ellizabeth Green (5 aces, 7 kills).

In other sports, the Pine Valley/Gowanda Varsity girls soccer team continued to struggle. The team was at Westfield/Brocton taking a 0-2 loss. Continued issues with ball control resulted in Pine Valley/Gowanda Lady Panthers only managing six shots on goal while their goaltender, Destiny Lindquist, faced 15 shots stopping all but two of those.