Emerson-Hubbard splits Wynot Triangular; loses at home to Homer

The Emerson-Hubbard Volleyball Team split the Wynot Triangular Tuesday night, beating Walthill 2-0, but losing 2-0 to the host Blue Devils. The Pirates also lost 3-1 at home to Homer Tuesday night.

The Blue Devils topped the Pirates 25-11 in set one, and 25-22 in set two.

Emerson-Hubbard defeated the Blujays 25-16 in the first set, and 25-23 in the second set.

The Knights won set one 25-16 before losing set two 27-25. Homer took set three 25-20, and set four 25-21.

Tough break losing to the Knights after beating them earlier in the year, but I thought the Pirates did a nice job topping Walthill.

Emerson-Hubbard (3-16) travels to Wakefield (6-12) to take on the Trojans Tuesday night.

Wakefield lost 3-0 at Ponca this past Tuesday night.

I think the Pirates have an opportunity to compete in this match, and maybe win it.

Emerson-Hubbard has shown some fight and competitiveness lately, and I think the Pirates can hold their own in this match.

The Trojans aren't a huge powerhouse or anything so I think Emerson-Hubbard has the potential to do well in this match.

Even if the Pirates don't win I think they can keep the sets close and perhaps take a set or two.

Emerson-Hubbard has to come out and play with pride, passion, fire, tenacity, grit, mental and physical toughness, as well as school spirit.

The Pirates have to be proud to dawn the purple and gold uniforms they wear, and play for each other and the betterment of the team.

Not that Emerson-Hubbard is playing for themselves or as individuals, but the closer this team can be the better they will play, in my opinion.

The Pirates have to keep chugging along and maturing and growing as young ladies and players.

Emerson-Hubbard has to keep showing improvement and the promise that they will be better in the future.

It hasn't been the type of season the Pirates were hoping for I'm sure, but there's still time left to do something, although the schedule is pretty tough after Wakefield.

Emerson-Hubbard just has to maximize their abilities and play up to their potential. The Pirates have to keep battling and fighting hard no matter what the odds, and give themselves an opportunity to have success from here on out.

Nothing can be done about past matches so Emerson-Hubbard has to simply move forward, and keep growing and improving every time they take to the floor.

This match with the Trojans Tuesday night is another opportunity to learn, grow, improve, and pick up a win.

Wisner-Pilger sweeps GACC Triangular

The Wisner-Pilger Volleyball Team swept the GACC Triangular Thursday night, downing the host Bluejays 2-0 and Lutheran High Northeast 2-1.

The Gators topped the Bluejays 25-19 in set one, and 25-20 in set two.

Jordan Wegner had 10 kills and 7 digs while Ariel Meyer totaled 8 digs. Lauren Jacobsen added 17 set assists.

The Eagles won the first set 25-21 before Wisner-Pilger claimed the second set 25-23, and the third set 25-22.

Wegner notched 12 kills and 10 digs while Maci Batenhorst registered 11 kills. Jacobsen added 9 kills, 10 digs, and 20 set assists while Meyer notched 17 blocks, 17 digs, and 10 set assists.

This was a big Triangular win for the Gators. Wisner-Pilger turned in two very good performances.

The Gators (13-6) take part in the Wisner-Pilger Invite on Saturday.

Up first for Wisner-Pilger is Allen (9-11).

The Eagles lost 3-0 at home to Hartington-Newcastle Thursday night.

This should be a win for the Gators.

Wisner-Pilger is peaking at the right time as they've won 6 out of their last 7. I really look for the Gators to do well in this tournament.

Wisner-Pilger has this match and a difficult match with Tekamah-Herrman on Tuesday prior to the East Husker Conference Tournament.

If anything, these matches before the Conference Tournament will help prepare the Gators for what they're going to see there.

I think Wisner-Pilger could be a sleeper and a darkhorse in the conference tournament, and could make some noise.

It wouldn't shock me to see the Gators pull off a big upset in the Conference Tournament.

First things first though, Wisner-Pilger has to worry about Saturday.

West Point-Beemer and O'Neill are also in this tournament, and figure to be tough teams.

The Gators have to play the way they have been lately, and if they do that, they should be just fine.

Wisner-Pilger is peaking at the right time, and it's so good to see the Gators playing their best Volleyball towards the end of the season.

There's still work left to be done, and Wisner-Pilger still has things to accomplish before season's end, but the Gators have to be happy with where they are at right now.

If anything Wisner-Pilger is probably pretty excited and revved up for this tournament and all their other matches down the line.

The success the Gators have had lately should give them a jolt of confidence and momentum that lasts a while I would say.

GACC loses at Battle Creek; splits home Triangular

The GACC Volleyball team lost 3-0 at Battle Creek Tuesday night, but rebounded to beat Lutheran High Northeast 2-0 at their home Triangular Thursday night, but also lost to Wisner-Pilger 2-0 Thursday night.

The Bluejays lost 25-10 in set one, 25-8 in set two, and 25-12 in set three to the Braves.

Kali Stratman had 8 set assists.

GACC lost 25-19 in set one, and 25-20 in set two to the Gators.

Stratman notched 15 set assists.

The Bluejays topped the Eagles 25-20 in the first set, and 25-21 in the second set.

Bobbie Ortmeier had 7 kills while Stratman registered 17 set assists.

I think GACC has to be encouraged by the win over LHNE. I think it's something the Bluejays can work on, and could perhaps be season changing for GACC.

GACC (6-11) hosts Pierce (12-10) Tuesday night.

Pierce won 3-1 at home over O'Neill Thursday night.

Pierce is having a nice season, and has only lost to quality teams.

Pierce lost 3-0 to LHNE though so GACC has to see that and truly believe that they can win.

I think GACC has a chance to get their season back on track Tuesday night.

It's that time of year when GACC is normally on top of their game, and I look for GACC to play a good match.

It's time for GACC to make a run. They have some very winnable matches coming up prior to the Mid-State Conference Tournament, in my opinion.

With Clarkson/Leigh not playing as well right now as they once were, perhaps there is a chance for GACC to get out of that subdistrict and make state.

GACC has a lot of work to do if they want to get to the state tournament, but if GACC can get on a run here at the end of the regular season and get hot by the time subdistricts roll around, they could very well find themselves down at Lincoln again.

It all starts with the Pierce match on Tuesday though. GACC has to play the way they did against Lutheran High Northeast.

How GACC played against the Eagles is how they need to play all the time.

GACC now knows what it's going to take to get the job done. There's only one gear for excellence, and perhaps GACC figured it out against LHNE

We'll see how much the win over the Eagles mattered when GACC takes to the court on Tuesday.

Of course GACC's last match was against the Gators, but how GACC played against LHNE has to give GACC hope and promise.

Now it's a matter of going out there and building on what was done Thursday night. Pierce figures to be a tough challenge for GACC though, that's for sure. 

Scribner-Snyder falls to Mead

The Scribner-Snyder Volleyball Team lost 3-1 at Mead Thursday night.

The Trojans earned a 25-23 set one win, but the Raiders won set two 25-15, and sets three and four 25-14.

Kaylee Boyle had 7 kills and 12 digs while Nicole Boyle notched 10 digs and 7 set assists.

I thought Scribner-Snyder did a great job of competing in the first set, but the Trojans just couldn't sustain the same level of play throughout the match it appears.

Scribner-Snyder (8-7) takes on Stanton (17-2) and West Point-Beemer (9-8) at the West Point-Beemer Triangular Tuesday night.

The Mustangs downed Howells-Dodge 3-1 at home Tuesday night while the Cadets lost 2-0 to DC West, but beat Oakland-Craig 2-0 at the Oakland-Craig Triangular Tuesday night.

The Trojans are a solid ball club, and may be able to beat West Point-Beemer, but it won't be easy with the Cadets being a C-1 foe.

Then you have Stanton, who is one of the best teams in C-2.

This will be a good test for what Scribner-Snyder will see in the East Husker Conference Tournament though.

A lot of those schools are C-1 or C-2, and so if anything this is very good competition for the Trojans.

I think Scribner-Snyder will get a very good idea of where they stand heading into the tournament at the very least.

I feel the Trojans have what it takes to be competitive in this Triangular, and again, perhaps knock off the Cadets.

Hardly anyone touches Stanton so I'm thinking Scribner-Snyder's chances of upsetting the Mustangs are not high.

The Trojans have to believe they can win though, and have to try their best to defy the odds.

Scribner-Snyder is a good team, and has been very competitive this year, and I look for the Trojans to compete their tails off in this Triangular as well.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Scribner-Snyder at least take a set from West Point-Beemer, if not beat the Cadets.

I also wouldn't be surprised if the Trojans kept one of the sets close with the Mustangs.

This is definitely a step up in competition for Scribner-Snyder like a lot of their matches are so the Trojans should be used to playing bigger schools by now.

Playing these types of teams is all too familiar for the Trojans, and I think that will help Scribner-Snyder on their way to what they hope is two victories.

Again, I'm not expecting the Trojans to win both matches, but I think a split is attainable at the very least.

Losing both matches would definitely be a downer and momentum killer heading into the conference tournament though, in my opinion.

Stanton notches victory over Howells-Dodge

The Stanton Volleyball Team topped Howells-Dodge 3-1 at home Tuesday night.

The Mustangs rolled in sets one and two, winning set one 25-12, and set two 25-7. The Jaguars won set three 25-22 before Stanton grabbed set four 25-19.

Jessie Brandl registered 18 kills and 7 digs while Bree Burtwhistle posted 15 kills, 7 digs and 23 set assists. Hannah Heppner added 14 kills with Jaiden Hartl totaling 10 digs. Makenna Espinoza dished out 31 set assists.

Stanton played excellent Volleyball, especially in the first two sets, in my opinion.

The Mustangs (17-2) take on Scribner-Snyder (8-7) and West Point-Beemer (9-8) at the West Point-Beemer Triangular Tuesday night.

The Cadets lost 2-0 to DC West, but beat Oakland-Craig 2-0 at the Oakland-Craig Triangular Tuesday night while the Trojans lost 3-1 at Mead Thursday night.

Stanton shouldn't have any issues winning both matches I wouldn't think.

This should be a good tune up for the Mustangs for the East Husker Conference Tournament.

Stanton still needs to be sharp and on top of their game on Tuesday though. The last thing the Mustangs can afford to do is play sloppy.

Stanton has to come out and start fast, and do their thing.

The Mustangs have to go all out, and play well from start to finish.

Stanton must have a business like attitude, and be focused on the task at hand.

The Mustangs have to play as well as possible knowing they could potentially play North Bend Central in the East Husker Conference Tournament.

Stanton has to be as sharp as they can and must play as well as possible Tuesday night to gear up for the Conference Tournament.

The Tigers are mighty, and if the Mustangs are to have something to say about who wins the East Husker Conference Tournament, they need to play well Tuesday night.

With that said, I fully expect Stanton to turn in two great performances against the Cadets and Trojans.

Both of those teams are respectable, but not quite at the the same level as the Mustangs I would say.

That's not to say one of those teams can't take a set from Stanton, but to actually beat the Mustangs is asking a lot.

There aren't many teams that can hang with, compete against, and beat Stanton, and so the Mustangs have to keep pressing forward with their eye on the prize.

Stanton has to keep getting better and building for the Conference Tournament, end of the regular season, and postseason because I have a feeling the Mustangs will have a lot to say about things before the season is over.

I look for Stanton to be very dominant Tuesday night. It should be a great night of Volleyball for the Orange, Black, and White.

Howells-Dodge 2-3 in last five matches

The Howells-Dodge Volleyball Team beat Oakland-Craig 3-0 at home Thursday night before losing 2-0 to Clarkson/Leigh and Humphrey/Lindsay Holy Family, but beating Cross County 2-1 at the Clarkson/Leigh Tournament on Saturday, and losing 3-1 at Stanton Tuesday night.

The Jaguars won set one 25-19, set two 25-20, and set three 25-23 over the Knights.

Head Coach Neil VanLengen says the two teams are similar, but different at the same time. "They're a lot like us. They're just inexperienced. We got a little bit more size than they do, but both teams scrappy. I mean they're a defensive team. We should be a little more offensive at times. They're pry a little bit better defensively, and it showed. We hit the ball harder...they played better defense. And that's what we talked all night is we got to get in position, make plays defensively, cause we knew they were going to tip, hit balls off the block. We're working hard on our blockers getting our hands over the net. Just too many balls came down on our side on our block."

Jessi Brester led the Jaguars with 15 kills while Macey Kulhanek and Erin Prusa had 8 apiece. Kulhanek chipped in 22 digs while Taya VanLengen and Grace Kreikemeier had 12 and 8, respectively. Alyssa Coufal totaled 18 set assists while Lexie Brester registered 14.

The Cougars took set one 25-16 before Howells-Dodge won set two 25-17, and set three 26-24.

Prusa and Madyson Cech put down 7 kills apiece while Kulhanek and VanLengen recorded 19 and 13 digs, respectively. Coufal added 18 set assists while Lexie Brester notched 9.

The Bulldogs downed the Jaguars 25-17 in the first set, and 25-23 in the second set.

VanLengen posted 13 digs while Coufal and Lexie Brester dished out 9 set assists, respectively.

The Patriots topped Howells-Dodge 25-16 in set one, and 25-21 in set two.

Kulhanek compiled 13 digs with VanLengen and Jessi Brester added 10 and 8, respectively. Coufal chipped in 7 set assists.

The Mustangs rolled in sets one and two, winning set one 25-12, and set two 25-7. The Jaguars won set three 25-22 before Stanton grabbed set four 25-19.

Prusa led the way with 11 kills while Kulhanek registered 14 digs. VanLengen added 7 digs while Coufal and Lexie Brester contributed 14 and 11 set assists, respectively.

I thought Howells-Dodge really cranked things up at the tail end of the Stanton match. If the Jaguars play like they did in sets three and four in that match they are going to be tough to beat the rest of the season, in my opinion.

Howells-Dodge (11-8) takes on Clarkson/Leigh (15-5) in their first game of the Humphrey/Lindsay Holy Family Tournament on Saturday.

The Patriots lost 2-0 to Lutheran High Northeast, but beat Shelby/Rising City 2-0 at the Lutheran High Northeast Triangular Tuesday night.

Clarkson/Leigh is a very tough team, but if the Jaguars play the way they did against Stanton in the last two sets, then they can definitely upset the Patriots.

Howells-Dodge has to start fast and act like they want to be there though.

If the Jaguars play the way they did in the first two sets against the Mustangs they are more than likely going to lose in straight sets to Clarkson/Leigh.

Stanton is a great team, but Howells-Dodge is better than what they showed in the first two sets of that match.

The Jaguars are a young team, I understand that, but Howells-Dodge has to come out and be ready to play from the start on Saturday.

The season started out so promising for the Jaguars, but Howells-Dodge has been scuffling the last two weeks or so.

The Jaguars started the year 9-2, but have dropped 6 out of their last 8, so something needs to change quickly for Howells-Dodge.

This is a tough tournament, and the Jaguars are going to have to bring their "A" game to do well I would say.

Clarkson/Leigh is an established good team this year as are the host Bulldogs so Howells-Dodge needs to be ready to bring it.

The Jaguars are definitely capable of beating the Patriots, they just need to be on top of their game.

Howells-Dodge has the potential to go a run here at the end of the regular season, in my opinion, but the Jaguars have to start playing up to their capability.

The road is tough with this tournament, the East Husker Conference Tournament next week, and then North Bend Central and Tekamah-Herman the week after that, but to be the best you have to beat the best, and that certainly applies to Howells-Dodge.

This young team has now had almost a full season to grow and mature, and so you would hope to see some growth and maturity on the floor at this point in the season.

Perhaps the way this team played at the end of the Stanton match will carry over into Saturday's matches.

West Point-Beemer falls to Norfolk Catholic; splits Oakland-Craig Triangular

The West Point-Beemer Volleyball team is 1-2 in their last three matches, falling 3-1 at home to Norfolk Catholic last Thursday night, and 2-0 to DC West at the Oakland-Craig Triangular Tuesday night, but beating the host Knights 2-0 at the Triangular.

The Cadets took set one from Norfolk Catholic, 25-15, only to see the Knights win the next three sets 25-19, 25-18, and 26-24.

West Point-Beemer defeated Oakland-Craig 25-17 in the first set, and 25-13 in the second set.

The Falcons upended the Cadets 25-12 in set one, and 25-18 in set two.

West Point-Beemer did a really nice job in the Oakland-Craig match. I'm not sure what happened in the other two matches though.

The Cadets (9-8) take part in the Wisner-Pilger Invite on Saturday.

First up for West Point-Beemer is O'Neill (9-5).

The Eagles swept Plainview 3-0 at home Tuesday night.

This doesn't figure to be an easy match by any means for the Cadets.

West Point-Beemer can definitely win if they play up to their potential though.

The Cadets have to be ready to play from the get go Saturday morning.

The girls have to wake up and be excited to play the game of Volleyball.

The players have to prepare mentally and physically in practice this week.

Having three days to practice for this tournament definitely helps West Point-Beemer, in my opinion.

The Cadets can work on some things they struggled with in the DC West match.

If West Point-Beemer plays the way they did against Oakland-Craig they can definitely knock off O'Neill.

But if the Cadets play the way they did against DC West and Norfolk Catholic then it could be a tough start to the day for West Point-Beemer.

It all depends on which Cadet team shows up, in my opinion.

Hopefully it's good West Point-Beemer cause the Cadets could really benefit from success in this tournament with the East Husker Conference Tournament coming up next week.

West Point-Beemer has a big week next week with a home triangular against Scribner-Snyder and Stanton as well so the Cadets have to play well and set the tone on Saturday so to speak.

West Point-Beemer has to get fired up and have some giddy up in their step. The Cadets have to be excited for the opportunity to have a good day of Volleyball on Saturday.

First serve between the Cadets and Eagles is set for 10:00 am.