By Coach Kelly Erickson
The Central volleyball team last week hosted a triangular where they took on a tough North Cedar team before battling Clayton Ridge.
Against North Cedar, the Warriors fell in two sets, 16-25 and 14-25. North Cedar brought a lot of height and was a strong hitting team, but the Warriors continued to battle and compete. With such a young team, every match is a learning opportunity, and we continue to see players step up and contribute in different ways.
Brylee Erickson, Tenley Bormann, and Carlie Bergan led the offense with four kills each. On defense, Zoey Armstrong and Brylee each had seven digs, followed by Carlie with six. Brylee served 6-for-7 with an ace, Tenley went 5-for-6 with an ace and Carlie had a great serving night, going 5-for-5 with three aces.
Next, we faced Clayton Ridge. After falling to Clayton Ridge earlier this season at the Lisbon Classic, the Warriors came out ready to compete and turned the tables with a strong 25-16, 25-15 victory. As a team, we served 86%. Tenley had an outstanding serving performance, going 16-for-18 with five aces. Carlie went 7-for-8 with two aces and Ella Frieden went 6-for-7 with an ace.
Our serve receive was also much improved from our first meeting with Clayton Ridge, which allowed us to get into our offense more consistently. Ella led the offense with nine kills, followed by Brylee with seven.
Zoey led the defense with 11 digs, while Ella and Carlie each had eight and Brylee added seven. Zoey also did a great job running the offense with 16 assists.
On Saturday, the Warriors traveled to Midland for a tournament and faced some tough competition throughout the day. They began pool play against Easton Valley. We started the match a little slow, with some serve receive and hitting errors, but once we settled in and found our rhythm, we played much better, losing set one 10-21, coming back to win set two in a close set 23-21 and losing set three 10-15.
Serving was an area we continued to work on, finishing at 80% as a team with nine missed serves. In a close match, those little things can make a big difference. Rylie Kuhse served a perfect 12-for-12 with an ace, while Tenley went 9-for-10.
Brylee led the offense with six kills, followed by Tenley and Ella with three kills each. Zoey recorded 14 assists and led the defense with 11 digs. Brylee added 10 digs, Tenley nine and Rylie and Carlie each had seven.
One thing we continue to challenge ourselves with is being more aggressive and confident offensively rather than giving away too many free balls.
The next match was against a tough Monticello team. Although Central fell in two sets, with scores 20-22 and 8-21, the girls continued to compete and gain valuable experience against strong competition.
Carlie led the offense with five kills, while Brylee added three. Ella led the defense with 11 digs, followed by Brylee with six.
The Warriors served 84% as a team while also working to be more aggressive from the service line. Brylee went 8-for-10.
Central then faced Tipton, falling in two sets with scores of 13-21 and 15-21. The Warriors served 83% as a team, with Brylee going 6-for-7 with an ace and Rylie going a perfect 6-for-6.
Offensively, the team struggled to find a rhythm and finished with six kills over the two sets. Brylee and Carlie led the way with two kills each. Zoey and Tenley led the defense with four digs each, followed by Rylie with three.
In bracket play, the Warriors came out ready to battle against Calamus-Wheatland and earned a 2-1 victory. After starting off slow, losing 16-21, they came back to win the next two sets, 21-8 and 15-9. The girls did a great job continuing to fight and finding ways to make plays when they needed them.
Central served 84% as a team, with Brylee going 13-for-14 with an impressive five aces. Carlie was perfect from the service line, going 10-for-10 with four aces, while Ella went 9-for-10.
Carlie led the offense with seven kills, followed by Ella with five and Brylee four. Ella led the defense with seven digs, while Zoey, Tenley, and Brylee each added six.
Overall, it was a great weekend of learning, competing and continuing to grow as a team. We saw some really good moments from the Warriors, including our strong response against Clayton Ridge and our ability to battle through bracket play and come away with a win against Calamus-Wheatland. We also had several players step into different roles throughout the day and contribute to the team’s success.
As we move into our first conference match this week, we will continue to focus on serving aggressively while working toward our goal of 90% or better from the service line. We know that, when we serve consistently, our chances of putting ourselves in a position to win increase. We will also continue to work on limiting our errors, keeping our energy up throughout every set and trusting one another on the court.
This is a young group that continues to learn, compete and grow together. These girls continue to show up, work hard and battle, and we are excited to see what the rest of the season brings.
On the schedule for Central this week is a road match at West Central on Thursday, Sept. 10, then a tournament at Jesup on Saturday, Sept. 12.
