Girls volleyball: Neuqua Valey takes control in win vs. Waubonsie Valley
After losing to Waubonsie Valley earlier in the season, the Neuqua Valley girls volleyball team knew it was crucial to take control of the rematch from the start Tuesday night on the Wildcats' home court.
Neuqua came through, winning, 25-20, 25-16.
"After that first set, we said 'Let's go put this away,'" said Wildcats junior Faith Johnson, who led her team with 9 kills. Johnson's shots were sprinkled throughout the match and helped keep Neuqua (19-13, 3-2 DuPage Valley Conference) just far enough ahead until it could put the finishing touches on each set victory.
"It's just all the hard work I put in and the team motivating me," Johnson said of her play.
Set 2 was similar to the opening set with many small leads but nothing substantial until five consecutive hitting errors by Waubonsie (16-11, 2-4) put the Wildcats up 13-8.
The Warriors, though, responded immediately. Trinity Evans served up one of her two aces, then a Waubonsie hitting error following by a kill by her cut the lead to 2.
Neuqua regained a 4-point lead on its next possession and later went on a 5-2 scoring run to go up 21-14. It prevailed in the set and the match soon after.
Another Wildcat with a strong hitting night was Taylor O'Malley with 8 kills. She had 2 aces, with teammate Karly Miller racking up 3 aces.
"We lost to them earlier this season and we knew we had to push hard that second set," O'Malley said.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 4-1 in Set 1 thanks to two of Miller's aces. Neuqua led most of the way with a 1- to 3-point advantage. The Wildcats finally tightened their grip on Set 1, scoring three straight points, including an ace by Lauren Housholder to make it 23-19. A kill by Evans soon after gave Waubonsie the serve back, but a Warrior hitting error on the subsequent possession iced the opening set for Neuqua.
"We've been up and down this season. We've beaten some high-ranked teams and struggled point to point with other teams," said Wildcats coach Kelly Simon.
The clock is ticking on the regular season. Only 15 days separate both Neuqua and Waubonsie from their postseason openers.
"Down the home stretch, I would like to put more wins together," Simon said. "This is a dynamic team with a lot of versatility and great team chemistry. We're not ready for this to be over."
For Waubonsie, Evans and Cassie Chinn led the way with 5 kills apiece.
Coach Kari Galen wants her team to focus on two aspects of its game as it prepares for the postseason.
"When we play consistently and pass consistently, everything falls into place. But we've not been able to close out," she said.