Varsity volleyball swept by high ranking teams, injury strikes

Micheal Simmons, Blue M Editor-in-Chief

For the first time this season, Varsity volleyball was swept by the competition on Saturday as it lost to four teams, three of which were ranked in the top ten teams in the state.

“We have a tendency to start slow,” head coach Lisa Kinderknecht said. “[We started slow] In each of our first sets except for our very last match against Lawrence. We started off very well against Lawrence but we just can’t build on points that we win and we can’t trade points.

They had quite a few unforced errors, which is something we are working on. We can’t afford to do that when we are playing teams like that. Each set was still close in the 20s, we’re just not finishing when we get to that point. I feel like overall there was a lot of good stuff that came from Saturday, we played three of the top teams in the state and we were able to compete with them.”

The team ultimately lost to Blue Valley (18-25, 23-25), Olathe Northwest (17-25, 23-25), Blue Valley West (20-25,15-25) and Lawrence (24-26,25-20,15-25). The team is currently on a seven-match losing streak, leaving their record at 8-13 with a set record of 19-28.

“I felt that we played some of our best volleyball that we have all season,” senior Taylor Johnson said. “I think it should be noted that the teams we played were ranked in 6A so the competition was very good. Although we didn’t win any matches we competed with all of the teams and we have had to face a lot of adversity this year with injuries so we are still trying to figure out how to play as a team.”

The team saw the return of a starter as well as one temporarily leaving, as senior Brooklyn Cink returned from an injury that has left her out of play since Sept. 8. Senior Kia Wilson was also forced to sit out during the second set against Lawrence, due to a knee injury.

“It was a hard loss with the injuries,” senior Addie Terril said. “Players did step up and fill positions really well. We really came together as a team and communicated, we kept our heads high when we got down and kept doing our best. With people stepping up when injuries occur it will help us be stronger when everyone gets back.”

The team has a chance to break their losing streak today as they play Highland Park, Emporia and current rivals Washburn Rural at Washburn.