Jefferson volleyballers rebound from loss

Published:  Tuesday, October 13, 2009 (5 months, 1 week ago)
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By TRENTON GAUSE
The Delphos Herald
trentjen.gause@ymail.com

LEIPSIC — The Delphos Jefferson Wildcats traveled to Leipsic Saturday in their first volleyball match since dropping a Thursday heart-breaker against Columbus Grove.
The Wildcats responded well by defeating both Elmwood and Leipsic to show that they were still a force in the world of varsity volleyball.
Jefferson dominated Elmwood in two sets by scores of 25-16 and 25-8; they handled Leipsic 2-1 by scores of 25-11, 20-25 and 25-18.
In the first match, Jefferson didn’t miss a beat versus the Elmwood Royals.
In the early going, the Royals were able to keep things close but Jefferson eventually pulled away and won the set 25-16.
In the second set, Jefferson jumped out early and never looked back. The Wilcats poured it on by taking a commanding 19-5 lead when Elmwood called timeout to stall the momentum. It did not work as the Lady ’Cats would not be denied and rolled on to take the set and the match 2-0.
This match was dominated by serving and solid play at the net. The Lady ’Cats racked up a team total of 25 kills in the match and were led in serving by senior Mallorie Wilson (19/19 serving, 5 aces), senior Jenna Miller (10/10 serving, 2 aces), junior Kristin Klausing (4/4 serving, 1 ace) and senior Courtnie Rostorfer (5/6 serving, 7 digs).
Jefferson junior Bridget Culp led the net attack with eight kills, followed by Wilson (6 kills) and senior Stacey Blockberger (4 kills).
The second match of the afternoon pitted Jefferson against the host Leipsic Vikings. The home team put up a fight but Jefferson proved to be too much in racking up a team total of 36 kills and a combined 61/66 serving on their way to taking the match.
In the first set, the Lady ’Cats didn’t waste any time getting out in front 14-7. Jefferson never looked back, easily rolling up the first set.
Leipsic came to life in the second set. Led by five kills by senior Chelsea Gerten and junior Alyson Brecht (3 aces, 1 block, 1 dig), the Vikings were able to get on top of Jefferson 8-4 before Wildcat coach Diane Wilson called timeout to get her team refocused. With Jefferson down 16-9, they started to make a run behind Mallorie Wilson (7 kills in the set) to get within one. Leipsic took a timeout to try and regain momentum. It worked; they come out strong and started to pull away. With the Vikings up 23-19, Jefferson took a timeout but Leipsic held them off to even the match at one set each.
The two teams were locked in a back-and-forth battle early in the third set. With the score tied at 13, Jefferson started to pull away. Leipsic was forced to take a timeout when Jefferson went on a 5-0 rally. The Wildcats would not relent and took the third set and the match.
Jefferson got their second win of the afternoon with solid serving and aggressive play at the net. Jefferson’s leaders in the match included Rostorfer (14/15 serving with 1 ace), Wilson (13/13 serving, 1 ace), Miller (10/11 serving, 3 aces), Klausing (11/12 serving) and senior Tiffany Culp (6/6 serving, 1 ace).
The Wildcats’ play at the net was also a contributing factor with Wilson (19 kills, 5 blocks), Bridget Culp (8 kills, 6 blocks), Blockberger (3 kills, 13 digs) and Klausing (4 blocks, 11 digs) setting the pace.
The Lady ’Cats, coming off that loss in Columbus Grove, showed a lot coming into Leipsic, holding their composure and getting wins in back-to-back matches.
Head coach Diane Wilson commented on her team’s performance: “I thought it was a typical Saturday; it was hard to get anything flowing. First thing in the morning, girls usually don’t like to play.”
She also liked how her team responded after the loss to the Bulldogs.
“I was pleased we came back. I was a little concerned how we would bounce back after the loss to Columbus Grove but I thought the girls did a nice job of bouncing back,” she explained.
She did see some room for improvement: “I don’t think it was one of our better games but I blame that a lot on being Saturday morning.”
Jefferson (17-1) will move on to host Wayne Trace Monday, with a junior varsity start of 6 p.m.
Leipsic (6-11) will host Miller City on Tuesday; Elmwood will travel to Liberty-Benton on Wednesday.