CLC dumps Jacobs in 2

OK, so Crystal Lake Central's girls volleyball team won't go undefeated and is unlikely to repeat as Class 3A state champions.

But despite the loss of all 6 starters the Tigers are off to a surprising start to begin the 2008 season.

Central moved to 7-1 with an easy 25-14, 25-11 win over Jacobs in a Fox Valley Conference crossover match in Crystal Lake Tuesday night.

"I am sort of surprised by the way we have played this season," said veteran Tigers coach Doug Blundy. "But, I am not totally surprised. We beat a good Cary (Cary-Grove) team to win the Jacobs tournament. We played pretty well tonight., but were a little erratic. We played well in spurts. We just need to keep our focus."

Senior outside hitter Cori Cooper and junior middle hitter Lindsay Anderson, who were key subs on the state title team, led Central with 7 kills each.

"With Cori and Lindsay as our only players with varsity experience, we have basically a whole new team," said Blundy. "This team has to gain their own identity."

Jacobs (3-4) was hampered by its own errors. Committing 14 serving errors and 17 hitting errors, the Golden Eagles found it tough to compete against the Tigers.

"It was a frustrating night," said Jacobs coach Lisa Dwyer. "We made way too many unforced errors. But the good thing is all our mistakes are fixable. We just need to get back to the practice court and work hard and get our

Confidence back. Give Central credit. They are a tough defensive team and they are tough mentally."

Led by 3 kills and 2 aces by Anderson, the Tigers bolted to a 11-4 lead in Game 1. The Tigers' biggest lead was 19-7 after a kill by Anderson. Cooper's kill gave Central Game 1.

Jacobs got off to a fast start in Game 2. The Golden Eagles, led by 2 kills each from Amy Cavanaugh and Lauren Pigatto, grabbed an 8-6 lead.

But the Tigers responded with 7 straight points. A kill by Julia Paulson gave Central a 13-8 lead. The Golden Eagles scored the next point on a kill by Brittany White to make the score 13-9. That would be as close as Jacobs would get.

The Tigers finished strong with a 11-2 run capped by an ace by Tracy Friel.

Cavanaugh paced Jacobs with 5 kills and 11 digs.