By NATE BEIER | For the County Line
Despite taking its first league loss last week, essentially nothing has changed for the conference-leading Royall volleyball team.
Bangor bested Royall for the first time since the 2013 season last week, handing the Panthers a 3–1 loss. The loss might have been the first Scenic Bluffs Conference defeat for Royall this year, but a 3–1 upset by New Lisbon over Hillsboro the same night kept Royall atop the standings.
Bangor and Hillsboro finished the week one game behind Royall in the conference title race, as both teams have two losses.
The Cardinals won 27–25 in the first set on Sept. 26, but Royall won 25–20 in the second. Bangor held Royall to 19 points in the final two sets to take the win.
McKenzie Baeseman finished with 24 kills, while Emma Gruen added 9 and Emily Olson 6.
Also, Savannah DeWitt landed thee serving aces and led the team with 11 digs.
Baeseman and Gruen combined for 31 assists.
New Lisbon’s momentum from its win over Hillsboro didn’t carry over to Thursday, as Royall swept the Rockets away 25–17, 28–26 and 25–19.
Baeseman’s 28 kills led all attackers, and Olson added three.
As a team, the Panthers combined for eight blocks, led by Veronica Mertins with three, while Baeseman and Claire Herek each had two. DeWitt had a team-high seven digs, and Olson and Cheyenne Harris each added four.
Royall’s final week of the regular season includes a trip to Wonewoc-Center on Oct. 10 and a regular-season finale against Hillsboro on Oct. 12.
Falcons grab pair of wins
The Brookwood volleyball team had a full homecoming week when it traveled to Wonewoc-Center, and then hosted Necedah for alumni night to end its week’s play.
The Wolves took advantage of their home court by pinning a 25–12 win to the board in the first set of lTuesday’s game with Brookwood. The slow-starting Falcons rebounded brilliantly, as they didn’t allow more than 12 points a set the rest of the way, winning 25–11, 25–12 and 25–12.
Coach Jeanine Brieske said, “We came out really slow. Wonewoc-Center had some amazing servers, and it was really hard to get started. I’m really proud of the girls for gaining control and starting the second set out and never letting up.”
The Falcons finished with 13 serving aces on the night, led by Kate Hyatt with four. Hyatt also had six kills and a trio of blocks.
Angel Brueggen had 18 digs to lead the team, and Ellen Marriott had 22 assists. Elena Witt was perfect in serving with two aces.
Coach Brieske was impressed by her team’s “togetherness” against Necedah on Sept. 28, as the Falcons swept the Cardinals 25–19, 25–23 and 25–19.
The energy from the bench and the crowd was high as Brookwood improved its season record with the win.
Brueggen again had 18 digs. Lydia Madrigal had 14, as well as nine kills. Hyatt had six kills and four blocks.
Marriott’s 31 assists were a game-high.