We headed to Hettinger on Oct. 1 for our last C tournament of the year.
By MIA STAFFORD
We headed to Hettinger on Oct. 1 for our last C tournament of the year. We endured eight matches, 17 games, a wasp sting, and still stepped off the court with a first and second place. We decided to take two teams which at first I thought was a great idea, however, we had some illness and injury, so I was a bit nervous. One team had six players the other seven. We had little room for error. Both the teams gelled together beautifully. Everyone was talking, working hard, and the ball never dropped.
On team Maroon was: Emily Paulson, usually our libero, but on this day played all around and had to hit middle. She really stepped out and played hard (even with a wasp sting in the championship). She was pretty excited to put down a few kills in the middle front. She stayed focused and never let up. Shelby Schmalz, plays the setter positon, but one of her strongest talent on the team is being the spark plug. This girl leads the cheers and keeps everyone fired up. Her serving was dynamite as was her setting. Elyse Paulson, and outside hitter, had a great day. She read the court well which resulted in several kills. She is also one of the best servers we have. Abby Smyle, setter, had to really step up and be a main blocker. We only had two front row player and so she had to work hard at the net. She showed growth throughout the day with tips and blocks. Kira Irons, a middle blocker, stepped up to be a great leader. She blocked more than ever before and put down several kills. Elyse Fisher was our other outside hitter. She has been working on her front row game and it came alive. Her net play and tips improved with each match.
Team White was a team consisting of: Shaye Lardy, a setter, she worked hard on setting and her coverage. She is also a great motivator on the team. She keeps everyone fired up and moving. Katie Paulson played middle. She worked hard on block and hitting. Her hand had some injuries, but she was a trooper and played through it. Emily Belland showed great passing throughout the day and also played some front row. She is continuing to improve. She was excited to work on putting the ball down. Ashlyn Dix played the middle. She had some big blocks and excellent kills. Her serving was spot on when it needed to be. Jill Svihovec, the other setter for the team is quick one. She was all over the floor getting to her sets and then providing stellar coverage for our hitters. Gabby Madrigal an outside hitter, worked hard on her foot work and was able to negotiate some great kills, her serving is also vital for the team. She is continuing to work on her passing which has greatly improved. Ashlie Roen rounded the team out. She is a jack of all trades and on this day she played all around. She has been working on hitting line consistently and she got in a lot of reps and kills.
Each crew won their pool play and then the tourney started. We continued working hard and ended up meeting each other in the championship. Both Coach Holecek and myself felt it was already a win.
Mia Stafford is a volleyball coach for Bowman County.
