A win over Central and loss to South Winneshiek last week has the MFL MarMac volleyball team 16-11 on the season.
With three regular season matches remaining, the Bulldogs are guaranteed their first winning record since 2021 and have already surpassed the 2025 win total of 15.
MFL MarMac opened last week with a 3-1 victory over Central on Sept. 29. After the Bulldogs took the first two sets 25-18 and 25-21, a back-and-forth battle in the third went to Central, 28-26. However, MFL MarMac put the Warriors away in the next frame, 25-15.
Head coach Becky Johnson said this match had some similarities to when the teams faced off at the Ed-Co Tournament earlier this season.
“We had a stretch in the third set where we lost our momentum. During the reset between the third and fourth sets, we focused on a few specific, actionable things we could do to maintain our momentum and finish the match strong. The girls came out in the fourth set and did exactly that, carrying that focus all the way to the end,” she said.
Lily Johnson (12) and Ashtyn Dundee (10) both had double-digit kills for MFL MarMac. Blair Winter hit eight kills and Kambry Keehner and Payton McElwaine each smashed five. Addison Corlett paced the offense with 37 assists.
Kensey Ball supported the team’s defensive effort with a staggering 30 digs, double the amount of runner-up Corlett. Johnson collected 11 digs, McElwaine nine and Winter seven.
The Bulldogs also had one of their best blocking performance of the season, with eight total. Five players got in on the action, led by Corlett with three and two apiece for Johnson, Dundee, Winter and Keehner.
“One of the biggest positives for us was our blocking,” Johnson acknowledged. “That has been an area we’ve been working on all season, and it really clicked against Elkader. Our team did a great job executing at the net and seeing the results of all the work we’ve put into that part of our game.”
Johnson credited Central as an extremely scrappy team who doesn’t give up.
“They actually out-dug us, which says a lot about the effort they put into keeping the ball alive. We knew we were going to have to stay disciplined and continue to find ways to score,” she said.
The Bulldogs also served well, finishing the night at 94% with 17 aces. Gracyn Welch made all 22 of her attempts and led the team with five aces. Corlett was a perfect 22-for-22 as well, hitting four aces, and Ball connected on all 20 serves and added another four aces.
“Overall, I was really pleased with how we responded after losing momentum in the third set. Being able to recognize what needed to change, reset and then execute those things in the fourth set was a great step for this team,” Johnson said.
The Bulldogs concluded the week against South Winneshiek, the 15th ranked team in Class 2A. After falling 25-13 in the opening set, MFL MarMac narrowly lost the second, 25-23. South Winn pulled away in the third frame, however, winning 25-13 for a 3-0 sweep.
Johnson topped the offense with 11 kills, followed by Winter with four. Corlett recorded 19 assists.
Digs were spread more evenly in this match, with Ball and Winter each picking up 11, Corlett 10 and McElwaine eight. The Bulldogs recorded just two blocks—one apiece by Dundee and Keehner.
MFL MarMac’s serve percentage dipped below 85 percent. Ball hit 12 of 13 tries, including one of the team’s two aces. Corlett finished the night 9-of-10, while Winter was 8-of-9.
The Bulldogs remain at home this week, hosting Clayton Ridge on Tuesday, Oct. 6. They will wrap up the regular season next week, traveling to Waukon on Oct. 13, before welcoming Crestwood on Oct. 15 for senior night.
