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Altoona wins first set, 25-0, on way to beating Brashear

Shutouts in volleyball games are few and far between.

The Altoona Mountain Lions scored one Tuesday, blanking Brashear, 25-0, in the first game en route to sweeping the Bulls in a District 6-8-10 subregional semifinal at the AAHS Fieldhouse.

From Dalton Keller’s first serve in Game 1 to his last kill in Game 3, the match took only 48 minutes — almost an hour and a half faster than Brashear’s bus ride to Altoona.

Altoona veteran coach John Saboe remembered only one other shutout during his tenure with the Mountain Lions.

“In 1998, when we were playing Bishop Guilfoyle for the district title, we beat them 15-0 in Game 1 and 15-11 in Game 2,” Saboe recalled. “I was Eric Kozak’s assistant, and it was our first district title.”

Tuesday’s match had no drama. It didn’t have much of anything. Brashear didn’t even have a roster to give officials prior to the contest.

The 25-0 first game lasted just 15 minutes. On the Game 1-ending kill, a Brashear player took a volleyball to the face that knocked him to the floor, and he didn’t return to action.

That was the kind of night it was for the Bulls.

Brashear played better — not much — in the second and third games, falling by scores of 25-9 and 25-5.

“The kids did a good job, they worked hard,” Saboe said of his once-beaten Mountain Lions. “We asked them to play tough and play their game, and they did. We wouldn’t expect anything less.

“We have the attitude that every team on the other side of the net is state-championship caliber,” Saboe noted, “so we treat it like we’ve got another state championship team to play. We know we have to play up for every game and every opponent.”

Brashear coach Kerry White was gracious in defeat.

“We haven’t played anyone like Altoona,” White said. “The Pittsburgh City League is a different caliber of volleyball than the rest of the state.

“Being City League champ, we take pride in that,” White offered, “but we know we’re at a different level and that’s the hard part of it. We just had to drive 2 hours and 15 minutes to see it up close.”

Altoona junior outside hitter Dalton Keller served the entire first game for the 25-0 shutout win.

“I’ve never seen that before. Never,” Saboe said.

“I helped coach a girl, Kylee Clawson, who served 19 straight points at Homer-Center,” Saboe continued. “That’s the biggest streak of points I ever remember.”

Saboe said Keller deserved a credit for the service points, then added quickly: “In reality, the rest of the team still has to play defense, has to block, and has to hit. Anywhere in there, somebody can make a mistake so you have to keep playing the game and stick to fundamentals.”

Altoona will face the winner of tonight’s State College-McDowell contest for the sub-regional title Friday night. If it’s State College, the match will be played in Altoona. If McDowell wins, the Mountain Lions will be on the road.

Asked what the Lions could take from the lopsided win over Brashear, Saboe answered: “I guess you can call it a practice or a warmup for what we’re going to see moving forward.

“It gives us an opportunity to get a couple kids out there we may need down the line,” he said. “It gives us an opportunity to keep our skills sharp and to continue to move forward toward the goals we have down the road.”

As expected, many Lions fattened up their statistics Tuesday.

Swartz had 22 service points (seven aces), 13 digs and eight kills. Keller finished with 28 service points (eight aces), nine digs and six kills. Matt Furrer had eight service points (three aces), Jacob McCloskey had seven service points and eight digs, Chris Ball had 10 assists and Masen Nartatez contributed 11 assists

Swartz even rested much of the third game, a rarity for the all-stater.

“Every once in awhile we get him off and it gives him an opportunity to cheer for his teammates,” Saboe said. “For him to be successful, the rest of the team has to be successful.

“That’s the great thing about our game — one player can’t do everything,” Saboe said. “He’s a big part but other kids have to contribute, too … serving, passing, blocking, whatever. Everybody has to contribute for us to be successful.”

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