The Luverne Cardinals volleyball team picked up their first win of the season on Thursday, Oct. 22, against the Worthington Trojans. The Cardinals outlasted the Trojans 3-2 to break into the win column. With the win the Cardinals are now 1-3.
“The whole team has a new energy going into this week now that we have our first win under our belt,” said Luverne head coach Sarah DeBeer.
“I believe in every one of my players’ abilities. The hard part is getting them to believe in their own abilities and trusting that their teammates have their back.”
The Cardinals dropped a back-and-forth opening set 25-23. It was a set that saw nine lead changes with the biggest lead for either team being three points.
With the Cardinals trailing 10-9 in the second set, Reghan Bork came to the serving line looking to help the Cardinals build some momentum.
The junior setter rallied off six straight points for the Cardinals to help them build a 15-10 lead.
Elise Ferrell hammered down a kill with the Cardinals holding a 24-21 lead to clinch the second set for the home team.
In the third set it was the Cardinals coming out on the winning end with a 25-21 victory. It was once again Ferrell that recorded the game-winning kill to give the Cardinals a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Trojans battled back to win a competitive fourth set 25-23.
In the fifth and final set, the Cardinals scored the first two points of the set. The Trojans then scored six straight to build a 6-2 lead.
The Cardinals slowly chipped away at Worthington’s lead. With the two teams deadlocked at 10-10, the Cardinals closed out the set by outscoring the Trojans 5-2 to pick up the 15-12 victory.
“After some close games, the girls started to see the big picture,” DeBeer said.
“You can’t do it alone. You have to trust yourselves and your teammates. If they focused on what our team needed to do and not what the other team was doing they could take over the game.”
Gracie Zewiske led the team with nine kills. Kamryn VanBatavia recorded seven kills and three aces.
Christina Wagner and Zewiske both recorded three solo blocks. Macy Stratton recorded 24 digs and four aces.
“We had some great blocks from Christina Wagner,” DeBeer said.
“We had solid swings from Kamryn VanBatavia. Reghan Bork provided great leadership for our final push for the win.”
The Cardinals will look to pick up their second win of the season on Thursday, Oct. 29, when they play host to the Marshall Cardinals.
“Marshall is always strong all the way around,” DeBeer said. “We need to focus on our team and not what is happening on the other side of the court. Defensively blocking and anticipating the ball at a much faster pace. Offensively we need to be aggressive. We need to quicken up our offense by hitting combinations and quicker sets.”
Luverne 23 25 25 23 15
Worthington 25 21 21 23 12
Kills: Zewiske 9; VanBatavia 7
Aces: Stratton 4; VanBatavia 3
Assists: Baustian 20
Digs: Stratton 24; VanBatavia 15
Blocks: Zewiske 3; Wagner 3