Volleyball has winning week with victories over Holy Trinity and Randolph

by Alexis Tichy

The Irish volleyball team had a non-conference meet against Winsted Holy Trinity on Oct. 2, beating WHT at home in three straight games: 15-5, 15-11 and 15-4. The Irish kept WHT on the defensive with the team serving 60 for 63, 15 of which were aces. Sophomore Heather Wurm served a perfect 20 for 20 and had eight aces. Senior Krista Smith also had a perfect night serving going 12 for 12 with two aces.

It was a perfect night all around as senior Emily Nordlie went seven for seven hitting, having four kills and senior Cassie Raiche went five for five with two kills. Even though this was a non-conference game, this win helped the Irish in preparation for the final conference games of the season.

After a long bus ride, the Irish volleyball team took the win against Randolph in four games. Winning 15-5, 13-15, 15-9 and 15-9, the Irish played through loud crowd noise from Randolph’s homecoming fans. Coach Marty Kiebel said that although the crowd was loud in Randolph’s small gym, they were never disrespectful and the Irish JV and C-squad entered into a “Battle of the Fans”, bringing a state tournament feel to the match.

The Irish took advantage of the energized atmosphere, winning game one 15-5, but the tables turned towards an improved Randolph team in game two, taking the win 13-15 and tying the match with one game apiece. The rest of the match belonged to the Irish, winning game three 15-9 and game four 15-9. Coach Kiebel said this was a great win on the road against a team that has been improving since the introduction of a new coach. Smith had a big night both offensively and defensively. On offense, Smith served 17 for 20 with three aces and on defense she had 14 for 20 in hitting with three kills. Senior Krista Mavencamp went 16 for 20 hitting with five kills, junior Mandy Wurm went 17 for 21 hitting with eight kills and Nordlie went 16 for 18 hitting with 10 kills. Strong performances as a team will help the Irish for some tough upcoming matches against Lester Prairie, who is ahead of the Irish in the conference, on Oct. 11 and Paynesville on Oct. 15.