The Wisner-Pilger Volleyball team defeated Mead in four sets on Saturday in David City, winning the C2-6 District Championship and earning a trip to the state tournament in action heard on 107.9 The Bull.
Going into the match, Mead was 23-1 overall and Wisner-Pilger was 21-11.
The Gators won the opening set 25-20.
The second set was a back-and-forth battle, with the Raiders picking up a 26-24 victory.
Wisner-Pilger was hot in the third set, downing Mead 25-18.
Set four was also back-and-forth as Wisner-Pilger overcame an early deficit to defeat Mead 25-23, claiming the match 3-1 and winning the C2-6 District Title.
Rachel Otten had 16 kills while Aspin Waterman totaled 12 kills and 7 digs. Karrin Jindra added 10 kills and 18 digs while Adi Meyer had 8 digs and 27 set assists.
Head Coach Jean Groth says serving and serve receive played a huge factor in the match. "The team served very aggressive. Mead had difficulty passing and that prevented them from getting into their offense. Our receive was strong... we had concern about their jump servers, but our receive was strong and our hitters hit .350."
The Gators improve to 22-11 on the season. They will be the #7 seed in the Class C2 State Tournament this week in Lincoln. They will play #2 Superior in the first round Thursday evening at 5:30. The match will be broadcast on 107.9 The Bull.
Groth says her team is battle tested, and that has paid off for them as they are at state. "It’s rewarding. It’s a recognition of their full body of work this season. The Gators have forged through a very difficult schedule. 10 teams that are at state were on our schedule or at our tourneys this season. 7 out of the team’s 11 losses were to state tournament teams. The Gators are ready for the challenge the state tourney offers!"
The Wildcats have a 6'2 girl who has committed to Nebraska. Groth says her team just has to be themselves and play the game in order to win. "There are 2 Meyer sisters that are excellent attackers. We just have to play our game (aggressiveness and low error) and know they are going to get some amazing swings. We just need to focus on what we can control."
Superior has State experience, and the Gators not having any could be an issue for and hurt Wisner-Pilger.
I think Gators can compete and hang in there and pull the upset, but the Wildcats are a very good team.
Groth says everyone is thrilled to be at State. "The school, the parents and family, and the community have been very supportive of the team. Their excitement for their Gators is “through the roof.”
I think Wisner-Pilger is very happy to be at State, but the team can't get caught up in the awe of being there, they have to play to win.
The Gators beat a very good Mead team to qualify for State, and Wisner-Pilger has to do what they did on Saturday on Thursday as well.
The Gators have played very tough competition all year long, and are prepared for a team like Superior I feel.
Everyone at State and in the field is good though so Wisner-Pilger has to be on top of their game.
The winner gets either GICC or Summerland in the Semifinals on Friday at 3:00 p.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Thursday night's match will be held at Lincoln Southwest High School.
I hope you can all tune in to the Bull to listen to Wisner-Pilger State Volleyball!!!
It's the Gators' first State Tournament appearance since 2010 and their 16th appearance overall.
No comments:
Post a Comment