Huron sweeps Clyde after matchup moved to CPSC

SANDUSKY — Huron swept Clyde on Thursday, but Tigers coach Don Wood knows there always are things to work on. "I feel like we've gotta go back in the gym tomorrow and keep working on correcting things," Wood said. "There were a few things I wasn't crazy about with how we were handling the ball, but we're getting better." The Tigers started slow before knocking off Clyde 25-18 25-12, 25-16 at Cedar Point Sports Center. The matchup originally was scheduled for Huron High School, which doesn't have air conditioning. "Heat and humidity," Wood listed as the reason for the change of venue. "Our gym temperature wise isn't terrible; humidity is the problem. Kids hit the floor in the middle of a rally and it becomes an ice rink. "We asked them a few days ago because we knew this was a potential bad night for gyms without climate control. (CPSC director of operations) Justin (Kijowski) was kind enough to put it together and allow us to come out there." Huron (2-1) also will play at CPSC on Saturday when it hosts Notre Dame Academy from Toledo. Wood hopes his team passes the ball a little better. "We can be very potent when we're handling the ball," he said. "We had little stretches. We got a lot of kids across the net who can put it away. But we gotta get it to them. The first two contacts are awfully important. We're still a little inconsistent but we're getting there." Clyde (4-5) jumped out to a 10-7 lead on Amiyah Paul's kill and tied it at 15 on an ace by Brynlee Mussell. Huron responded with a 6-0 run sparked by two Paige Johnson kills and two Jada Foster aces. Foster's kill ended the first set. The point was kept alive when freshman Riley Harkelroad made a diving save. "She's doing a great job and she's able to do it because she's got the support of the upperclassmen around her," said Wood of Harkelroad. "The pressure's not all on her; she can just play. She's enjoying it and she's learning a lot." Huron dominated the second set, closing with a 6-0 run and again using a strong block. A Reece Hotz kill and a block by Harkelroad and Mya Smith gave Huron a 2-0 lead. Some early errors in Set 3 prompted Wood to call a timeout with the Fliers leading 8-4. Huron regained the lead with a 7-0 run that included two kills from Lizzie Perin. A kill by Smith finished the match. Smith, a springy 6-foot-1 middle hitter, led Huron with 13 kills and six blocks. Foster added eight kills and was 16-for-17 serving. Johnson had six kills and Harkelroad added five. "Paige had a nice night," Wood said. The ball had to go outside a lot because we were out of system so much. She did a real nice job getting good swings on some balls. "Hark didn't have a great hitting night, but her floor defense was very good." Jenna Cox was 16-of-16 serving with two aces and matched Adelyn Van Sickle with 12 digs. Hotz added 32 assists. Riley Andecover led Clyde with six kills and Mussell had 20 digs and four aces. After a strong start, Clyde helped Huron with unforced errors in the second set. "We had such a great practice (Wednesday) night," Clyde coach Shelley Rogers said. "Sometimes you know. I watched them walk in and once you coach long enough you kinda get the vibe. "It's Day 3 of school, they're getting used to the routine. I don't think they're getting enough sleep; they're a little exhausted. It plays such a hard role in a mental game. At one point I felt bad; it was kind of throwing spaghetti at the wall. Nobody was producing. When they did start to pick it up, Huron's got such a great block. Our hits weren't there." Rogers wore a walking boot on her right foot. She tore a calf muscle during a five-set win against Bowling Green last week. "I cheered too hard during the BG game," Rogers said. "I lurched forward and tore my calf."