Green Ridge stuns Sacred Heart in district final

GREEN RIDGE — The Green Ridge Lady Tigers upended the Sacred Heart Gremlins’ bid for a third straight state championship Tuesday night in Green Ridge.

The Tigers needed just two games to defeat the top-seeded Gremlins and earned their first trip to the Class 1 state sectionals since 2006.
A first-game rally lifted Green Ridge to a 26-24 victory and the Lady Tigers never trailed in game two, winning 25-18.

“Everybody did their job tonight and it was a complete team effort,” Green Ridge coach Lori Larimore said. “We knew we had our work cut out for us tonight and we eliminated some unforced errors. Our team goal for the season has been maximum effort and good communication and our girls did it tonight.”

Green Ridge led the thrilling first game 19-15 until Claire Fischer and Kelli Lamb bolstered a 6-2 Gremlin run.

The Lady Tigers  regrouped and converted a pair of kills by Clare Chamberlin and Ragin Dillon to knot the score at 24.

After an error by Sacred Heart, Torey Williams scored on a service ace and the Lady Tigers jumped on top of the defending state champions 1-0.

Fueled by the home court advantage, Green Ridge rode the wave of momentum through the second game and jumped on top 8-2.

Refusing to go quietly, Sacred Heart rallied. Lamb and Erica Stone tallied three kills apiece and the Gremlins sliced the deficit to 18-16.

However, four different Lady Tigers scored points on the final six serves to seal the Gremlins’ fate.

“Green Ridge did enough to win the game,” said Sacred Heart coach David Fall. “It’s the old speech — our girls have so much to be proud of. It’s always tough to lose that last game of the year, but someday they will be excited to look back at everything they have accomplished.”

Laurel Larimore paced Green Ridge with nine kills. Dillon added 10 assists and Torey Williams compiled 13 digs.

Lamb led the Gremlins with 12 kills and Rachel Fritz added seven digs.