Despite a last-minute push by North Marion, the Husky volleyball team swept a match there 25-14, 25-15 and 27-25 on Thursday.
“We played very well against them,” Coach Heidi Nichol said. “They really came together as a team coming off a loss … just put some things together and looked good out there.”
They weren’t as tentative facing North Marion as they had been against Stayton on Tuesday at Stayton last week.
“At the very beginning of the game, it was really fairly equal,” Coach Nichol said. “It happens with high school teams. You don’t know who’s going to be tough until you push and see where the weaknesses are.”
By the time the teams were at about eight points, Sweet Home had figured out “they were going to win the game,” Coach Nichol said. After that, the Huskies clearly dominated.
The third game, the score was closer. North Marion had a 21-17 lead, but the Huskies ended up coming back and winning.
That was a big deficit to fight under the new rally scoring, Coach Nichol said. “We didn’t miss our serves down the home stretch, and when they made they’re serves, we got it back for a sideout.”
Teresa Lewis, Katie Reynolds and Ashley Horn were key in serving the ball under pressure, Coach Nichol said.
Lewis served 15-17 with five aces. Lei Himan served 15-18 with seven aces. Lisa Brocard served 11-13 with three aces.
Hitting, Brocard was 12-15 with five kills and three blocks. Ashley Smith was 13-14 with two kills. Susie Sieg was 8-11 with four kills.
The junior varsity won 25-19, 22-25 and 15-11. The freshmen won 25-23 and 25-12.
On Saturday, the Huskies traveled to Madras for a tournament.
“We played well in pool play,” Coach Nichol said. “We improved every time we played.”
The Huskies opened with two losses to Pleasant Hill. They split with Culver and defeated 4A Summit, making them second in pool play and placing them on the winner’s bracket.
They were off for more than two hours after pool play, then they faced LaPine. LaPine defeated the Huskies in the single elimination tournament.
LaPine was hard to score against with a serve, Coach Nichol said. The team has an excellent serve receive. LaPine also serves well.
“The girls played okay, but you could tell by the end of the game, they were wiped out,” Coach Nichol said. Every game, the Huskies showed some improvement either as a team or as individuals.
Serving on the tournament, Lewis was 19-22 with two aces. Brocard was 18-21 with two aces. Himan was 18-21 with six aces, and Reynolds was 31-33 with five aces.
Lewis set 75-78. Emmert set 60-69.
Brocard hit 28-37 with 22 kills. Lewis hit 20-23 with six kills. Smith hit 18-22 with two kills.
Stayton defeated the Huskies on the road 25-11, 25-13 and 25-18 on Tuesday last week.
The junior varsity defeated Stayton. The freshmen lost.