It was a big start for the Three Lakes varsity volleyball team as they opened Northern Lakes Conference play last week with a home match with Phelps and ended the week with a conference tournament in Crandon last Saturday.
The Bluejays also traveled up to Eagle River for a quad hosted by Northland Pines back on Sept. 2, where the team played three matches.
The Bluejays and Fighting Knights did battle Sept. 4 in Three Lakes, with an always interesting twist. Three Lakes and Phelps co-op in most sports, but each has its own volleyball program, so players who are usually teamed up in the fall and spring compete against each other in the fall.
Three Lakes had Phelps’ number early on in the match, gaining a 12-4 advantage. The Jays then went on a 13-1 run on their way to a 25-5 first-set victory. Sophomore Malia Szews served for a stretch of points late in the set to close the win.
“A strong win in the first set allowed opportunities to work all 12 of the Three Lakes rostered players into the match,” said Three Lakes Head Coach Betsy Gruszynski.
The Fighting Knights made some adjustments and held together defensively in the second set, which led to a tighter set. Phelps held a lead midway through the second before the Jays rallied to eventually win the set. Three Lakes countered some of the attacks by Phelps freshman Emmalyn Jones with good defense, and sophomore Kate Koshuta tallied and made some big plays at the net in the middle. The second set ended in a 25-19 final.
The Bluejays went on to win the third by 10, 25-15, to complete the sweep and start the NLC season 1-0. Koshuta led the team in hitting percentage, while Szews led the squad behind the service line.
A few days later, the team went 6-0 in an NLC conference championship tournament in Crandon, Sept. 6, beating Goodman-Pembine, Wabeno/Laona, Crandon and Elcho by a 2-0 score. The Jays fought back against Florence and won by a 2-1 final after losing the first set 25-12.
Three Lakes also faced some tough competition at the Northland Pines quad back on Sept. 2. The team went 1-2 on the day, with a win against Phillips and two sweep losses to Florence and Northland Pines.
“It seems as though a combination of injuries and nerves got the best of us,” said Gruszynski. “Although they were able to secure a win against Phillips, an unusually high number of unforced errors led to losses against both Florence and Pines.”
The Bluejays also played in a tournament in Marathon on Aug. 30. Three Lakes lost its first two matches to Marathon and Fall Creek before rallying to win its next three matches and finishing fifth out of eight teams.
Three Lakes moved to 16-4 overall and 7-0 in the NLC this season and will be away from home twice this week, with an NLC game at Elcho this Thursday, Sept. 11, at 7 p.m., and will compete at a tournament in Wautoma this Saturday, Sept. 13, with action starting at 9 a.m.
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