Toppers lose on the road and at home this past week

By Kelsie Hoitomt

GLENWOOD CITY – The Glenwood City volleyball team hit the road for their first conference game of the season against the Plum City Blue Devils on Tuesday, September 11.

They had a day of rest before taking their home court on Thursday against the St. Croix Central Panthers.

Loss in Plum City

The game was the best out of five matches, but Lady Hilltoppers were swept by the Blue Devils in three 13-25, 18-25 and 14-25.

“Although the scores were low, the girls played hard throughout the entire game. They just had too many service and hitting errors that racked up points. We would let them go on runs of three to four points then we would get the ball back, but simple errors would give the ball back to them,” explained coach Chelsea Culver.

Against the Blue Devils, Ashley Burns played a solid game picking up 12 digs. Kenzie Kruse had four service aces and five assists and Kelsie Knops had four kills.

“The girls left the gym with their heads held high as they played extremely hard the whole game and had many long rallies,” shared Culver.

Loss at Home

The Hilltoppers played their first conference home game on Thursday, September 13 against the St. Croix Central Panthers and were swept in three matches 22-25, 22-25, and 14-25.

The game was an even match up as both teams battled back and forth through the first two matches. There were several long volleys with the ball being attacked and dug up and hit back over again.

The Hilltoppers at one point in the first game were up 18-11. Haley Tiberg had two great reads on the ball as she jumped up for a block and hit the ball hard onto the floor. The girls were however not able to maintain the momentum and the score quickly changed.

The second match was much the same with the score tied throughout the first several points.
The Toppers would come from behind 8-12 to get the lead 16-14, but again with missed serves and attack attempts, the lead wouldn’t stay.

The girls did a very nice job at hustling for balls that were passed out of bounds. On one play, Ashley Burns dug the ball, which was hit awkwardly off her arm and out of bounds, but Megan Samens managed to get to the ball and pass it to Stephanie Caress who hit it over for a very impressive play.

The third game was dominated by the Panthers as they held a steady lead throughout the entire match. The girl’s tried hard, but just weren’t quite able to connect with the ball.
“The girls played their hearts out and had a blast and it was sad to not see the score reflect their talent and dedication,” said coach Culver.

On the evening, Kelsie Knops had a team and season high of eight kills. She also had four service aces. Burns had a season high of 17 digs. Stephanie Caress had three kills, eight assists and seven digs. Kenzie Kruse had seven assists and Tiberg and Samens each had four kills.

“Overall they had 87 attempts on hitting, which means they are becoming much more aggressive at attacking the ball,” said Culver.

The Hilltoppers played in Boyceville against the Bulldogs on Tuesday, September 18 at 7:00 p.m.