By JIM LUTGENS
Publisher
They’re rated No. 5 in the state.
That’s about all you really need to know about the Waterville-Elysian-Morristown volleyball team.
The Bucs brought their show to town Thursday, Sept. 13 and handed the Panthers a 3-0 defeat, winning 25-28, 25-8, 25-14.
The Panthers, who three nights earlier topped Fairmont for their first win, saw their record slip to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the Gopher Conference.
According to coach Onika Peterson, the Panthers did not back down against WEM.
“I was impressed that our girls came out fearless,” she said. “They could have given up when things got tough, but they battled. We set some team goals that we wanted to accomplish tonight against WEM and we were able to meet all four of them. Everyone got in the game. The girls worked hard and I am very proud of their effort.”
Individually for NRHEG: Sydney Schultz 4 digs; Anna Jacobson 2 kills; Katie Cliff 3 kills, 1 ace block; Grace Tufte 10 assists, 4 digs; Kendall Johnson 5 kills, 11 digs; Sophie Stork 2 kills, 7 digs, 1 ace block; Elli Baker 1 assist; Racquel Fischer 1 kill; Summer Kath 2 assists; Maddie DenHerder 1 kill, 1 assist; Cambria Nissen 4 digs; Teagan Sutter 1 ace; Eren Jacobson 1 ace.
The Panthers beat Fairmont 3-2 in a nonconference contest Sept. 9 in New Richland.
Individually: Schultz 4 digs, 1 assist, 1 ace serve; Jacobson 5 kills, 4 ace blocks; Cliff 4 kills, 1 dig; Tufte 1 kill, 24 assists, 1 ace serve; Johnson 5 kills, 5 digs, 2 assists, 3 ace blocks, 3 ace serves; Stork 11 kills, 9 digs, 1 ace serve; Baker 2 kills, 2 ace blocks; Nissen 8 digs, 1 ace serve.
“I am very proud of the girls,” said Coach Peterson. “They never once got down and they fought for every single point. It is great to get our first win under our belt.”