Mount Mercy Academy Sports Round-Up
Soccer
The injury bug has hit the Mount Mercy Academy Soccer team and has impacted the team’s offense. Playing without two-time Division B Player of the Year Rosie Bandura (West Seneca) has hurt the team’s offense.
The team was shut-out in both of its contests last week, losing despite playing tough defense in both games. The team lost to Mount Saint Mary 1-0 and Niagara Falls 2-0. The team will play Buffalo Seminary this week, the team’s Senior Game and close its regular season with a non-league game against Sacred Heart.
Volleyball
The Mount Mercy Academy Volleyball team won one and lost two of its most recent matches. The team defeated Cardinal O’Hara, but fell to Mount Saint Mary and Nichols.
The Magic beat Cardinal O’Hara in three games, 25-17, 25-23 and 25-23. The team was missing some of its more experienced players during this match, but the younger team members stepped up. Sophomore setter Mara McCrea (West Seneca) continued her strong play, contributing ten assists, two aces and two kills. Senior Megan Balen (Cheektowaga) had six kills and classmate Lacey Sheehan (Orchard Park) added five kills, two aces and an assist. Sophomore Riley Coughlin (Blasdell) had four kills and two aces and junior Mia Freedenberg (Lake View) added three kills and three aces.
“The team stayed ready in defense and played every ball and their energy and communication were strong,” commented Coach Lauren Derwin.
The team battled hard against Mount Saint Mary, but fell 21-25, 17-25 and 16-25. McCrea had another strong match, notching nine assists and recording four aces. Sheehan added seven kills and a block, ace and assist. Freedenberg had nine aces and a kill. Balen had three kills. Derwin complimented McCrea’s setting, Sheehan’s front row play and Freedenberg’s serving as high points for the Magic. She also felt the team’s defense had improved from their first match against Mount Saint Mary. Mount Mercy came out flat in games two and three against Nichols. The team fell just short in game one 23-25 but dropped the next two 8-25 and 7-25. Derwin lamented the team’s lack of energy
and communication in the last two games of the match. McCrea had seven assists, Balen had six kills and an ace and Freedenberg had six aces. Sheehan added three aces and three blocks, along with two kills. The team closes its home season with two matches this week, Nardin Academy and Sacred Heart Academy. The team’s Senior Night is Friday against Sacred Heart.
Mara McCrea’s ten assists against Cardinal O’Hara was a bright spot, but I wouldn’t call it proof the younger core is ready. The experienced players were missing, and the Magic still needed 25-23 sets to close it out; that’s different from handling Mount Saint Mary. If you’re tracking those rotations, a ranked roundup of AI video tools could add context, but one match isn’t a trend.
It's really inspiring to see younger players like Mara McCrea step up. I even used mistral le chat to look up similar stories of student athletes balancing sports and school.
Mara McCrea stepping up with ten assists while the older players were out stood out to me. My younger sister had a similar moment on her swim relay when a senior got injured, and she had to juggle extra practices with school. She used cursive handwriting worksheets to keep her notes readable after long pool sessions. That kind of behind-the-scenes adjustment often gets overlooked.
Reading this round-up really highlights how much resilience student athletes need, especially when key players like Rosie Bandura are missing through injury. The fact that the soccer team held strong defensively despite being shut out shows real character from the whole squad. The volleyball section was particularly detailed and it was great to see younger players like Mara McCrea stepping up so confidently when the experienced squad members were absent. As a student who also tries to balance sport commitments alongside coursework, I have leaned on academic support in Last Minute resources more than once when training schedules made it impossible to meet deadlines on time. Senior Night matches always carry a special energy wishing the Magic all the best for…
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