Merrimack volleyball beats Pinkerton in five

MERRIMACK – It was senior night for the Merrimack High School girls volleyball team, but a sophomore stole some of the spotlight.

Jen Coffey stepped in key spots Monday night for the Tomahawks, as they held off Pinkerton in five games, 20-25, 25-10, 25-21, 23-25, 15-12.

Coffey led Merrimack (15-1 in Division I) with 15 kills and added 13 digs and three blocks, while senior Allison Latham added 12 kills and three blocks.

“She has been phenomenal for us,” Merrimack coach Tammy Lambrou said of Coffey. “To come in, and to have not played varsity at all last year, she didn’t even swing varsity, she was a straight JV player. For her to come out relaxed, and she knew how important it was for the seniors, and for her to play the way she did and help push it over the edge was awesome.”

Merrimack also got big performances from seniors Kate Cole (41 assists, nine digs, three aces), Alyssa Melanson (six aces, two blocks) and Nikki Mathewson (nine digs, four kills, three aces), as the ’Hawks won their eighth consecutive match.

Pinkerton (12-4) got 18 digs and 10 kills from Brenna McNally while Brittany Peredna had nine kills, Amanda Stikeman had 13 assists and Courtney Collins and Tyla Mahon combined for 10 blocks. Rachel Byrd added 15 service points.

“Those are two very good teams and both battled hard all the way through,” Pinkerton coach Todd Royce said. “They’re very big on their front line. They were blocking like crazy. We did a good job covering, but when they keep blocking it makes it a little bit tougher.”

After a lengthy celebration for the seniors, Merrimack stumbled out of the gate, falling behind 6-0 and 8-1 in the first game. The ’Hawks rallied to tie the match at 13, but the Astros were able to regain the lead and held off Merrimack to win 25-20.

The ’Hawks regrouped for the second game, jumping out to a 7-2 lead, that turned into a 15-6 advantage when Royce called a timeout. But Merrimack won 11 of 12 points during one stretch and led 21-7 before putting the Astros away 25-10.

“I think the senior festivities and it being their last regular-season home game, it kind of got emotional for them,” Lambrou said. “A couple of them have been with me since they were freshman. It started slow, but we definitely picked it up.

“It was adjusting from the nerves and starting to play defense, which I think we did pretty well. Defense is going to win the games. We’ve been working on our defense, and it really improved and showed.”

Merrimack got out to an early lead again in Game 3, and led 24-16 when Pinkerton made it interesting. The Astros closed to within three, but a kill by Latham ended the game for Merrimack, 25-21.

The ’Hawks got out to an 8-3 lead in the fourth game, and appeared to be on their way to closing out the match, but the Astros battled back and took the lead, their first since the end of the first game. Pinkerton came back and tied the game at eight, and after that, neither team led by more than two points, and the Astros won the final two points of the game to win 25-23.

“It took a lot of guts,” Royce said. “They came out down 2-1 in Merrimack against one of the better teams. It shows a lot of guts to come back out and keep fighting, especially after the way that second game went.”

The fifth game was more of the same, as neither team led by more than two until the end, the lead changed hands four times and there were eight ties, including 12-12. But after a Pinkerton service error tied the game, Cole served out, recording an ace to give Merrimack a 15-12 win.

“When it came down to it, our defense carried us in the end,” Lambrou said. “They’ve worked hard, but we can still improve every day. We have two really tough games (left). We have to stay focused and not worry about what’s going to happen next.”

Merrimack plays at Nashua North on Wednesday and at Alvirne on Friday, while Pinkerton hosts Dover and Nashua South.