NORTH MANCHESTER – It looked to be in the bag for Wawasee, but a persistent Manchester volleyball club made a game of it Tuesday night. Wawasee held a two game lead and had the lead in the third game, only for Manchester to force five games before the Lady Warriors escaped with a 25-19, 25-14, 25-27, 20-25, 22-20 marathon.

Aly Anderson was a monster on the back line for the Lady Warriors with 60 digs and added a pair of aces. Addison Ayres had a big night at the net with 17 kills and a block along with digging 13 attempts. Alli Ousley accounted for 43 helpers, seven kills and four aces, Becca Anderson added 11 kills and two aces and Madi Wilson dug 22 Manchester attempts.

The win moves Wawasee to 6-4 on the season, riding a three-game winning streak, with Plymouth coming to town Thursday to open the Northern Lakes Conference schedule.

“A good test right before NLC begins,” said Wawasee head coach Jeff Phillips. “Manchester is going to surprise some teams this season. Getting a ‘W’ was a fight and a good lesson.”

The Wawasee JV (7-2) also found the going rough with Manchester despite a 25-17, 25-24 win. Skylar Janda helped the cause with three kills, three digs and two aces while Hannah Marie Lamle blocked four Manchester kill attempts and had two aces and four kills of her own. Amy Beer led the team with eight assists and Kabrea Rostochak added five kills.