Chillicothe’s volleyball team pulled off one of the week’s biggest postseason upsets on Thursday, October 22, going on the road and stunning top-seeded Marietta in five sets in a Division III district quarterfinal.
The Cavaliers (18-6), who had already survived a five-set battle with Unioto in the first round, did it again at Marietta, winning 23-25, 25-22, 20-25, 25-19, 15-9. Twice Chillicothe dropped a set, and twice it answered, taking the fourth set to force a deciding fifth and then closing out the top seed 15-9.
The win sends Chillicothe to a district semifinal against Sheridan at 6 p.m. Tuesday, October 27, at Logan High School, with a district final berth on the line.
Waverly is also very much alive in Division IV. The Tigers swept River Valley 25-11, 25-13, 25-15 and advanced to a district semifinal against Warren at 7:45 p.m. on October 29 at Logan.
From the Scioto Valley Conference, Zane Trace, Westfall and Southeastern also reached the district semifinal round. In Division V, Zane Trace (15-8) fended off Minford in four sets, 25-8, 16-25, 25-19, 25-20, behind Karlee Snavely’s 24 kills, 10 digs and four aces. Westfall (12-10) handled Portsmouth in four sets, and Southeastern (17-6) swept Rock Hill in Division VI behind 21 kills from Kylee Dunn. Adena (13-10) also advanced, handing Piketon (9-14) a four-set loss in Division V.
Not every local run continued. Huntington (11-12) ended its season with a five-set loss to Portsmouth West, 21-25, 18-25, 25-23, 25-13, 15-10, and Paint Valley (1-23) reached the end of the road with a straight-set loss to Eastern Meigs in Division VII after picking up its first win of the season earlier in the tournament.
The district semifinals across the Southeast District play out over the coming week at Logan and other sectional sites, with Chillicothe’s rematch-tested squad now two wins from a regional berth after taking down the bracket’s top seed on its own floor.