Columbus East High School

Columbus East and Bedford North Lawrence traded momentum throughout Tuesday night’s Hoosier Hills Conference showdown, but the Stars were able to come away with a 3-1 victory. BNL edged out the first two sets, 25-22 and 25-21, before the Olympians came alive in the third with a convincing 25-16 win to extend the match. The fourth set proved to be the deciding factor, as East fought to keep the contest alive but came up just short, 26-24. The Olympians had stretches of strong play and held leads in every set, but closing points proved costly. Payten Osborn guided the offense with 22 assists and added five aces at the service line. Chloe Gill turned in an all-around effort with eight kills and 20 digs, while libero Krea Martin collected 24 digs and two aces. Lilah Klei posted 12 kills and two aces, and Kenlee Gault added 11 assists. At the net, Anika Jenkins contributed six kills and two blocks, Addy Dean tallied three blocks, and Izzy Rice added six kills. The loss gives East its first loss in Hoosier Hills Conference play. To stay in the HHC race, the Olympians will need to pick up wins in their upcoming matches against New Albany at home Thursday night (9/18) and Floyd Central on the road September 25th. Even with the setback, East continues to show growth, already surpassing last season’s win total with several weeks still remaining in the schedule. Keep working hard O's!! The JV Olympians picked up a 2-0 win over the Stars in the JV match.