With strong outside hitting performances from Gabby Beaubrun and teammate Sofia Kelley, both were strong in the Wildcats’ 3-1 victory over the Eagles. Central Mountain won in the four set contest (25-19, 27-25, 25-18, 25-14.

“It was a good team win. Bald Eagle is a good team. We showed up to play,” said Central Mountain Coach Chipp McCann. “We matched up pretty well with them. We knew that coming in. They’re really strong on the right side and our outside is strong. I feel like we’re pretty strong across the board. I felt like we could get the win coming in here we’d have to play well and we played well enough to win.”

Bald Eagle Area got a strong effort from Leah Bryan, as she was a dominant force from both the outside and inside.

In the opening contest, the Wildcats notched the 25-19 victory in a tough set right off the bat. Leading the Wildcats offense from the service line was Sophia Hardy, who had five points while teammate Lily Downing finished with three through Set One.

TIM WEIGHT/Special to the Sun-Gazette Central Mountain's Chloe Confer (3) sets the ball during a volleyball match against Bald Eagle Area in Wingate on Monday, Sept. 15, 2025. The Wildcats won 3-1.

Both Kelly and Beaubrun were deadly accurate with solid spikes and strong hits.

Central Mountain jumped out to a 6-3 lead. However, Bald Eagle was able to pull within one thanks to an ace by Bryan and two side outs, cutting the deficit to 7-6.

But three consecutive service points by Downing extended the Wildcats’ lead back to five points, and they were able to keep that distance throughout the rest of the set, finishing the first set strong to take it.

Back bounced Bald Eagle in Set Two. There, the Lady Eagles were able to keep Kelley in check for most of the contest. However, the Wildcats still had Beaubrun, who continued to make an impact throughout.

Offensively, the Eagles got off to a sizzling start with five consecutive service points by Casey Angellotti. In that run, Bryan would post two slams that would not be returned.

TIM WEIGHT/Special to the Sun-Gazette A Central Mountain volleyball player spikes the ball during a volleyball match against Bald Eagle Area in Wingate on Monday, Sept. 15, 2025. The Wildcats won 3-1.

But Central Mountain came battling back chipping away with three consecutive service points by Allison Koch, cutting it to a 6-5 Bald Eagle advantage. With the Lady Eagles leading 8-7, the Wildcats once again heated things up on the service line. Chole Confer would roll off six consecutive service points to take the lead at 13-8.

But in the end, the Eagles would chip its way back into the game, forcing a 25-25 tiebreaker. Two service points by Emily Smith gave the Eagles the 27-25 set victory.

“In the first set, I thought we struggled a lot from the service line,” said Bald Eagle Area coach Taylor Geidroc. “In the second set, which they came back and won, I thought they did a better job passing but we just kind of hurt ourselves on our own errors. They’re (Central Mountain) is a good team. They have awesome servers and pretty strong hitters but I think we struggled with managing the ball.”

In the third set, the two teams fought back-and-forth in yet another tight contest closely mirroring the first.

But Beaubrun totally took over the service line and front line.

TIM WEIGHT/Special to the Sun-Gazette Central Mountain's Gabby Beaubrun performs a return during a volleyball match against Bald Eagle Area in Wingate on Monday, Sept. 15, 2025. The Wildcats won 3-1.

With the score tied at six, a Central Mountain side out put the ball in the hands of Beaubrun at the service line. She added to her busy night with five consecutive service points to spark the Wildcats, which helped them take the lead and never look back as they took set three, 25-18.

Central Mountain took control early in the fourth match, ending the contest with its biggest set win 25-14.

Central Mountain 3, Bald Eagle Area 1

CM 25 25 25 25

BEA 19 27 18 14

TIM WEIGHT/Special to the Sun-Gazette The Central Mountain and Bald Eagle Area volleyball teams perform pre-game greetings before a volleyball match in Wingate on Monday, Sept. 15, 2025.

TIM WEIGHT/Special to the Sun-Gazette Central Mountain's Sofia Kelley (24) spikes the ball during a volleyball match against Bald Eagle Area in Wingate on Monday, Sept. 15, 2025. The Wildcats won 3-1.