The Marlboro volleyball team’s service was on point.

The Dukes had over 20 aces in a 3-0 win over the Rondout Valley Ganders on Thursday at Marlboro Central High School.

“They played great,” Marlboro coach Nicole Kitson said. “I was able to get all of my girls in, which always makes me happy. They had great offense with their aces. We had a couple of good plays. I was able to get my second-string setter in. It was nice to work some things out for the rest of our season.”

Madi Callahan had five kills for the Dukes, while Madison Gibney had three and Claire Devin had two as the Dukes won the match 25-6, 25-7, 25-6.

None of the sets were close, and the big leads allowed Kitson to get her entire roster onto the court.

“I’m always trying to get as many as I can in, but at the end of the day, we’ve got to win and I want to be confident and I want them to feel confident in their roles,” Kitson said. “Right now, I felt today, they all did a great job.”

Kaitlyn Thorne shined from the service line as she helped give the Dukes a big game in the second and third sets. Thorne took to the line in the second set with the Ganders leading 3-2. She served the Dukes to a 9-3 lead in a run that including three aces before the Ganders called a timeout.

She added one more point and the Dukes trailed 10-4 when she left the line.

Claire Devine finished things off in the second set as she took the line with the Dukes leading 16-6, and her ace finished the second set, putting the Dukes a set away from the victory.
Throne had an equally successful service run, as she turned a 2-1 Marlboro lead into an 8-2 advantage.

Kalista Birkenstock finished the night at the service line with an ace.

“Our serves were very strong, and that definitely helps our offense out,” Kitson said. “That keeps the pressure on the other team. We work every day on having great serves.”

The Dukes opened the season, winning their first match over James I. O’Neill, but followed that up with three straight losses heading into last week. They won both matches last week and are 2-1 in the Mid Hudson Athletic League Division II. Their only league loss so far has come to Section 9 and MHAL newcomer Our Lady of Lourdes.

“We’re a younger team,” Kitson said. “I have my one middle senior (Callahan) who really helps keep everyone together. My defense is very strong, but my offense is still a work in progress right now. But the last few games in our league, they have really been stepping it up.”