ACTION AT THE NET — The Panthers’ Carlie Wagner (4) and Harlee Vokoun (11) go up for a block during Saturday’s Mankato West Invitational. The Panthers won their first two Gopher Conference matches last week. No results were available from the tournament. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)
By JIM LUTGENS
Editor/Publisher
The NRHEG volleyball team opened the Gopher Conference schedule the same way it opened the regular season — victorious.
The Panthers improved to 3-0 overall and started the conference schedule 2-0 by beating WEM 3-1 and Blooming Prairie 3-2 last week.
On Tuesday, the Panthers traveled to Waterville and won 22-25, 25-23, 25-14, 28-26.
Senior Anna Schlaak had a huge night with 28 kills, 10 digs, five ace blocks and four ace serves.
"Anna did it all for us tonight,” said Panthers coach Joe Kuechenmeister.
Noelle Bartness dished out 45 set assists.
"Noelle is our lone setter, and she really stepped up,” said Kuechenmeister. “She was definitely a big reason why our hitters had so much success tonight."
Carlie Wagner finished with 11 kills and two ace blocks, Harlee Vokoun five kills and seven digs.
"It was huge for us to be able to leave Waterville with a win,” said Kuechenmeister. “It's a big rivalry, and any time you're able to get a win on your rival’s court, it's something to be proud of."
At Blooming Prairie Thursday, NRHEG prevailed 25-23, 18-25, 23-25, 25-15, 15-10.
Individually: Schlaak 18 kills, 27 digs, two ace blocks; Wagner 18 kills; Jade Schultz 11 kills; Vokoun 11 kills, three digs; Bartness 53 set assists.
"Tonight's overall team performance was frustrating to say the least,” said Kuechenmeister. “For whatever reason, we had to battle ourselves and our own mistakes all night long, and that made life tough."
The Panthers played Saturday in the Mankato West Invitational. No results were available.
NRHEG played Tuesday at LeSueur-Henderson. The Panthers travel to Randolph Sept. 15 and play at Mankato Loyola Sept. 20.
