By JOHNNY PEPPO

Sports Editor

RESERVE – There’s not much that compares to the opening week of district play when in-parish rivals face-off. With so much contact between the fans, it can sometimes seem akin to civil war.

So it was when St. Charles came into Riverside Monday afternoon for a match that would give the winner an early edge in the district 10-2A title race. And the home squad wasted little time setting the tone.

The opening game went to the Rebels with a pair of 25-14 wins to take a 2-0 advantage.

The third game was the most competetive overall as the two squads traded volleys and sideouts all the way to a 20-25 win for SCC that kept the Lady Comets alive.

But the fourth game saw Riverside jump out to a comanding lead and roll their way to a 25-17 victory to take the overall win.

Marci Millet and Nicole Porrier led the Riverside offense, with 22 kills and 44 assists respectively. Katie Tregre led the St. Charles attack with three aces and seven kills on the evening.

&#8220We continue to make the necessary offensive and defensive changes on a game by game basis,” said Riverside Coach Toni Miano of her team’s success.  &#8220Tonight the home field advantage and our fan support definitely worked in our favor.  Offensively we had 52 team kills and defensively we had 72 digs.  It was a total team effort.”

The win puts the Lady Rebels at 1-0 in district for while the Lady Comets move to 1-1. Next up, Riverside is scheduled to play John Curtis at home Thursday. SCC also plays host Thursday, taking on St. James.