Stone Volleyball First In District Ahead Of Road Trip

The Stone Memorial Panther volleyball team has hit its stride with a five match win streak to improve to 8-5 and put them atop their competitive district.

The Tori Permenter led Panther squad outscored opponents by a combined score of 18 sets to one and are a perfect 6-0 in the district. Permenter said last week was a turning point in the season for her team and her job now is to ensure her girls are peaking at the right moment.

“So I just think keeping that energy, keeping that consistency and keeping that drive,” Permenter said. “We have a lot of games in a short amount of time and keeping the girls ready to go is kind of just the main thing right now. Making sure we’re playing our best ball in the postseason.”

Stone’s defense has been a bright spot in 2024, the Panthers are averaging three serve receive errors this season. Permenter said when she arrived at Stone seven seasons ago they averaged 11. She also said junior middle hitter Lucy Grothe is playing the best volleyball of her career at the right time.

“Last week, she definitely hit her stride offensively,” Permenter said. “Against Cumberland County she had 19 kills and five blocks, which is honestly really insane. All hitting above her all of her averages, so I thought she did really well last week, especially we were giving her the ball and giving her the ball in the right moments.”

Stone volleyball graduated much of their normal rotation after a record breaking 2023 season, Permenter said there was outside noise about what this new roster could accomplish this season.

“We had a lot of doubters pre-season, so I like to see that the girls are kind of proving them wrong and that they have something to prove,” Permenter said. “So, they keep that drive and keep that mindset, it’s going to be really hard to stop us through the postseason. I’m really excited about what they can bring.”

The Panthers have a full schedule this week playing six games, including a trip to a tournament in Fort Walton, Florida. But first on September 10, the Panthers will welcome number three in the district Upperman to town.

Permenter said staying perfect in the district heading into their trip to Florida will be a deal to the team. She said the trip will be a time for team bonding and will be the last annual trip with this year’s senior class.