Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Potter-Dix freshman Jayden Shoemaker goes for the kill while Creek Valley's Chloe Stupka and Catie Koenen put up a block during the Lady Coyotes' 3-1 match victory in Chappell Friday night.
Potter-Dix's Lady Coyotes travelled to Chappell Friday to take on rival Creek Valley and won three sets to one against a tenacious Lady Storm team that battled throughout the match. Potter-Dix started fast in the first set, pulling out to an 8-to-1 lead before the Lady Storm was able to string consecutive points together to narrow the lead. The Lady Coyotes finally regained their rhythm, and opened up a big lead and looked to cruise to a comfortable first set win. But the Lady Storm started a rally, and capitalized on miscues and mistakes that stalled the Potter-Dix offense. Creek Valley rallied to 23-to-24 when Potter-Dix freshman Jayden Shoemaker finally put the set away with a kill for a 25-to-24 first set win.
The momentum of both teams continued into the second set, with Potter-Dix miscues allowing Creek Valley to match the Lady Coyotes scoring. Lady Storm senior Caitlyn Mueller delivered timely kills and sophomore Grace Timm came up with big blocks to give Creek Valley a lead midway through the set. Potter-Dix started to gain momentum and put together a series of points, and eventually tied the set at 22-to-22. After going down 23-to-22, Creek Valley took a time out and head coach Jena Hansen settled her squad and regrouped. The Lady Storm fought back, and both teams traded scores, unable to gain a two point advantage to take the set until Creek Valley finally broke through with two straight points to take the set 29-to-27 and tie the match 1-to-1.
That would be the only set the Lady Storm would win, as the Lady Coyotes were able to hold off Creek Valley in the next two sets, earning 25-to-22 and 25-to-18 set victories for a 3-to-1 match victory. The match featured outstanding play by Potter-Dix junior Mikayla Lee challenging the Creek Valley offense with three blocks while recording seven kills and four service aces. Potter-Dix freshman Jayden Shoemaker had eight kills and three aces in the victory. Potter-Dix was scheduled to travel to Kimball on Tuesday, while Creek Valley was scheduled to travel to Leyton.
