It seems so easy for teams to schedule tough opponents. But sometimes the best games in the state can happen organically. That’s the case for girls volleyball as several tournaments played throughout the state provided matches that are fit for a state tournament.
That’s what made them so much fun.
Here’s a brief recap of some of the high-profile matches that were played at various tournaments throughout the state.
Class 2A
(1) Sedgwick County 3, (3) Meeker 1
The Cougars overcame a tremendous offensive effort from Meeker’s Emma Luce. The senior recorded 27 kills and had a hitting percentage of .207 throughout the match.
But Sedgwick County proved to be capable of overcoming that storm. Jensen Request had a team-high 15 kills and freshman Lainee Nein added 13. The Cougars played three matches at the Denver Christian tournament and Meeker was the only team to take a set from them. They topped No. 9 Holyoke in the finals to claim the tournament championship.
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Class 4A
(7) Niwot 2, (4) Lewis-Palmer 0
Lewis-Palmer has looked more like the dominant program it was a few years ago, but a tournament loss to Niwot (at L-P) could be seen as a sign that there is still work to do.
The Rangers got a balanced offensive attack as Kiley Gennerman, Madi Crowe and Amya Speller each finished with at least four kills. But the Cougars were able to maintain a safe lead through the two sets to come away with an impressive win.
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Class 4A/3A
(4A 5) Windsor 2, (3A 5) Platte Valley 1
Platte Valley is a team that shouldn’t be ignored heading into Patriot League play. At the Lewis-Palmer tournament, the Broncos took on eventual tournament champion Windsor and pushed the Wizards to a third set. And what might be more impressive is that they took the first set from Windsor and forced the 4A powerhouse to battle back.
Sophomore Karsyn Fetzer led all players with 11 kills. Julia Bohlinger led the Wizards with eight kills in this match and added seven more in the tournament championship match against Loveland.
