Paxon HS- Down 0-1 against home Paxon in the opening round of the Gateway Conference Tournament, Englewood showed incredible grit by battling back to win three sets in a row to defeat Paxon 3-1. It was Englewood’s third win in a row, after defeating Westside 3-0, and Sandalwood 3-2, last week to head into the tournament.
The team is led by head coach Cynthia Bateh who has taken a virtually inexperienced group of young ladies and coached them to play as a team. ” I’m really proud of them ” said Bateh after their win over Paxon. Ironically it was a team that Englewood fell to earlier in trhe season 3-1. A sign of the growth the team has experienced under Bateah and her dedicated staff.
On the court, the Rams are led by junior Alexis Mironova (91 kills) with 17 kills and 4 blocks versus Paxon on Tuesday. freshman Angelina Rebish (79 kills, 31 blocks). Anagelis Rosa is an excellent server with 45 aces on the season, with 6 against Paxon. Senior Zung Par leads the team with 363 digs with 33 against Paxon, however its been an all around team effort in all categories.
Senior Arianelis Rodriguez, Junior Jada Pittman, Senior A’Shayla Sapp, Junior Nickayla Trottie-Smith, along with Daniela Rojas (Jr), Manh Huai (Sr), Yadeliz Lopez (Sr), Jennifer Mawi (Jr), and Sher Paw (Sr) have all been instrumental in the team’s success.
After advancing in the Gateway Conference Tournment, Englewood had to turn around and face Fletcher, a 7-time Gateway Conference Champion falling to them 3-0. However, the team has lots of momentum heading into district play, where they look to continue their growth in a great season.
