Aggressiveness from the service line is the way Lehighton wants to attack each and every one of its volleyball opponents.

The Tribe got off to a hot start from the service line against Colonial League opponent Palmerton and never looked back on Tuesday night, defeating the Bombers 3-0 by scores of 25-15, 25-16, 25-14.

“We’re focused on that. When we’re getting the ball in play, it’s been an aggressive serve and we’ve been able to capitalize off that,” said Lehighton head coach Lauren Nietz. “I’d like to see a little more consistency at times with getting our serves in play. But I do like our aggressive approach, and we were able to go on a few runs in the match because of that.”

The Indians showed that aggression early in the first set when senior Lyla Kershner helped Lehighton get out to a 5-0 lead after three consecutive aces. The Tribe kept the pressure on with kills from Lorah Thomas, Jocelynn Kuhn and Aleea Yeakel to hold a commanding 15-7 advantage.

The Bombers (2-10) fought back a bit to cut the lead to 16-12, but another strong offensive surge from Lehighton — plus a strong finish from the service line with three aces coming from Makenna Snyder — wrapped up the 25-15 first set win.

“I’ve been working on my serve for sure. It’s all about just picking your spots on the court and using the correct technique to get it there,” said Kershner. “You just need to try and find the holes. You can sort of tell which players are the strong passers and which players struggle with that, so you have to try and attack that.”

Palmerton came to battle in the second set, getting the set to a 9-9 tie. The Bombers’ Hailey Barry made some nice plays and helped them to continue to fight throughout the match. However, Lehighton then went on another big run, paced by two aces from Vera Hartsell to get out to a 21-11 advantage and come away with the 25-16 second set victory.

“The girls absolutely fought hard tonight. The big thing for us tonight was that our varsity setter got injured and we only found that out shortly before the game, so we had to make some last-minute adjustments, and I think the girls handled that very well,” said Palmerton head coach Savannah Mickel. “It certainly didn’t go our way tonight, but next time we compete against them, hopefully we won’t have the challenges we had tonight, and we can make it a more competitive match.”

Two kills by dominant middle hitter Lorah Thomas to start the third — followed by some good serves from Snyder — would put Lehighton up early, 6-1. The Indians then put their foot on the gas pedal the rest of the way with Thomas once again finishing the set strong with two blocks to put Palmerton away for the 25-14 third set win and the 3-0 sweep.

“I think we’re settling in. After seeing a lot of the tougher teams already this season from the Colonial League, and to be in the position we’re in at the moment, we feel we’re in a solid spot,” said Nietz. “I think we can get into a little groove now and really start playing well. But it was good to get over that .500 mark tonight at this point in the season.”

IN THE MIDDLE … Thomas has been tough in the middle all year long for the Indians, and finished with five kills, three aces and three blocks in this one.

STAT LINE … Snyder led the way with six kills. Kuhn added four kills and Kershner two.

ACE IN THE HOLE … Lehighton had 15 aces, as Kershner led the way with five. Snyder added three, and Hartsell and Autumn Clewell each added two apiece.

Palmerton 15 16 14

Lehighton 25 25 25

Stat leaders: Lehighton - Lorah Thomas 5 kills, 3 aces, 3 blocks; Makenna Snyder 6 kills, 3 aces; Lyla Kershner 5 aces, 2 kills.

Records: Palmerton (2-10); Lehighton (5-4)