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(Photo\/Indy Ignite)<\/p>\nThe way Lydia Martyn of the Indy Ignite sees it, the work happening behind closed doors is finally\u00a0showing up\u00a0when the lights burn brightest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what we do in practice every day,\u201d Martyn said. \u201cIt\u2019s just starting to click in games.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Martyn and her Indy Ignite teammates made it look effortless on March 12. However, the numbers tell a story of precision and balance. The Ignite swept the defending Major League Volleyball\u00a0(MLV)\u00a0champion Orlando Valkyries 25-20, 25-22, 25-17 at Fishers Event Center, pushing their win streak to eight games and improving to an\u00a0MLV-record\u00a014-2 on the season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The victory marked Indy\u2019s fifth sweep of the year, extending their dominance over Orlando, whom\u00a0they\u2019ve\u00a0now beaten three straight times this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a moment in the second set, the script threatened to flip. Orlando built an 18-14\u00a0lead, and\u00a0Ignite head coach Lauren\u00a0Bertolacci\u00a0signaled for a timeout. When play resumed, Azhani Tealer checked in.\u00a0<\/p>\n
(Photo\/Indy Ignite)<\/p>\n
The 2025 All-MLV First Team\u00a0selection\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0seen significant action in six matches while recovering from an ankle injury. Tealer made her presence\u00a0felt\u00a0immediately, scoring four of Indy\u2019s next six points during an 8-1 run that reversed the set entirely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you haven\u2019t played for a second and you\u2019re on the bench, you kind of realize how fun it is to be out there,\u201d Tealer said. \u201cI just wanted to have fun because I missed being out there, so just going in there and having a little fun and changing the energy and hopefully going back and winning the set. So, we did that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A pair of Martyn kills closed out the frame, and the Ignite never looked back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Orlando entered the match with a specific game plan:\u00a0slow\u00a0down Martyn and\u00a0force\u00a0Indy out of tempo from the service line. The Valkyries executed well in stretches,\u00a0mainly in\u00a0the second set, but\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0sustain it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Indy specifically, we wanted to shut Lydia Martyn down,\u201d Orlando coach Amy Pauly said. \u201cWe think when Lydia gets shut down, it makes things harder for everybody else. And she had a fantastic night.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Martyn finished perfect from the floor, scoring all 10 of her points on kills without an error on 13 attempts \u2014 a 77% kill percentage that even surprised her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, this\u00a0number,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0very surprising because I never really look at these, but I am proud of myself for that,\u201d Martyn said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But as Pauly noted, the\u00a0Ignite\u2019s\u00a0danger\u00a0lies in their diversity. Anna DeBeer led all scorers with 14 points on 11 kills and three blocks.\u00a0Lektor\u00a0Member-Meneh\u00a0added 13 points and Tealer contributed 11 in just 1.5 sets. Setter Mia Tuaniga orchestrated the attack with 43 assists, averaging 14.3 per set.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Ignite finished with season highs in hitting percentage (49.5%) and kill efficiency (38%).\u00a0<\/p>\n
The third set followed a now-familiar pattern. Tied at 15, Indy unleashed a 10-2 run that featured contributions from five different players \u2014 Tuaniga, Martyn, Tealer, Member-Meneh\u00a0and DeBeer \u2014 as every point came from the Ignite offense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bertolacci\u00a0credited her team\u2019s composure, particularly against an Orlando squad that made multiple lineup changes throughout the night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had great composure today,\u201d\u00a0Bertolacci\u00a0said. \u201cIt was a difficult game. They changed their lineups a\u00a0lot,\u00a0they did a few\u00a0things pretty good;\u00a0they served\u00a0really well. We had a little bit of trouble there, but we were very composed and we were able to play our game around that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Valkyries dropped to\u00a0an\u00a08-9\u00a0record\u00a0with the loss, unable to solve an Indy team that continues to pull the proverbial rug from beneath them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Ignite now hits the road for a matchup against Omaha on March 14, airing on the Roku Sports Channel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Contact Multimedia Reporter Noral Parham at 317-762-7846. Follow him on\u00a0X @3Noral<\/a>.\u00a0For more news, visit indianapolisrecorder.com.<\/a><\/p>\n
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