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KENNESAW - It's still early in the season and the Kennesaw Mountain volleyball team is seeking its identity. But the sixth-ranked Lady Mustangs have a lethal offensive weapon in Mariah Booth.

Booth was near impossible to stop while she was on her game, and she put together a strong performance against Parkview on Saturday in the Cobb/Gwinnett Challenge at North Cobb High School.

She came away with 14 kills and two blocks in Kennesaw Mountain's 25-19, 26-24 win over the Lady Panthers.

Lauren Hutchinson contributed with seven kills, two blocks and an ace in the winning effort. Gracie Henderson added two kills and three aces and Kaylee McGrew tallied 16 assists.

But the Lady Mustangs are breaking in younger talent and they're still having issues with consistency after graduating five starters from last year's Class AAAAA runner-up squad. They would be near-flawless for a stretch and then get disjointed if someone makes an error or their opponent makes a big play.

"We're still on a learning curve," Kennesaw Mountain coach Tonya Kern-Honea said. "We're trying to adjust, build confidence, understand our role and gradually inserting new things and trying to figure who wants to pass, play defense and serve-receive."

Kennesaw Mountain got hot midway through the second game behind Henderson's serve. She broke open an 11-10 Lady Mustang lead with eight straight service points with help from Booth, who provided two kills and a solo block.

But a Hutchinson hitting error put the ball in the hands of Audrey Hipple, Parkview's strongest server, and the Lady Panthers cut the Kennesaw Mountain lead to four points at 21-17.

"(Hipple) was the one that got most of their points," Kern-Honea said. "She had a very good serve and if we're going to be a good team, we have to handle good servers."

The Lady Panthers eventually tied it at 22-22 on a Booth hitting error and took a 23-22 lead on an ace by Jillian Oates. The teams played on even term before Booth converted Kennesaw Mountain's second match point attempt with a kill.

A long run on Hutchinson's serve broke open a 16-16 deadlock in the first game. Two straight kills by Booth gave Kennesaw Mountain a 23-16 lead before she ended the first game with a smash.

"It's the beginning of the season and we're still trying to adjust," Booth said. "We're realizing our potential and striving for perfection."

Kennesaw Mountain also got wins Saturday against Mill Creek (25-10, 25-14), Peachtree Ridge (25-12, 25-13) and Brookwood (10-25, 25-18, 25-14).

Booth was the offensive leader for the Lady Mustangs with a combined 31 kills, along with 12 digs and six blocks. Hutchinson added 28 kills, 13 digs and 7.5 blocks, while Sarah Shaw had 14 kills and 14 digs. McGrew tallied 70 assists.

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