Lady Jays Volleyball
Volleyball Dominates at Crofton
By Raleigh Pfeiffer
The volleyball team demolished the Crofton Warriors on September 17. The Bluejays easily swept the Warriors in three sets.
The Bluejays came out strong in the first set and finished with a score of 25-7. In the second set, they could not be stopped and ended with 25-13. Pierce polished off the game with a third and final set score of 25-15.
“We did a nice job keeping the focus during the match. We connected well with all of our hitters and had a balanced attack for all three sets. I was especially happy with how we utilized the middles consistently in transition,” head coach Zach Weber states. “We just need to keep our heads down and work to improve,” Weber said.
Some outstanding players of the game were senior Nora Herian with 16 kills, sophomore Kayton Werner with eight, and junior Kydnal Werner with six.
Herian had three blocks, while Ky. Werner, Ka. Werner, and senior Adrienne Riggert all had one block each.
Herian, Ky. Werner, and Ka. Werner all had four serving aces as well.
“Everything. I think the biggest thing that we did really well was that we played at our level and didn’t sink to their level,” senior libero Josie Painter states when asked what went well. “We are always working to connect better and make everything cleaner,” Painter adds.
Come support the Bluejays at their next home game on September 22 against Hartington Cedar Catholic, with the freshmen team starting at 5 and varsity to follow!
Pierce Crushes Battle Creek
By Lydia Cone
The Pierce High volleyball team traveled to Battle Creek on Tuesday night to take on the Bravettes in a Mid-State conference matchup.
The Bluejays came out swinging in the first set, taking a commanding win 25-16, and kept the momentum rolling in the second with a set score of 25-14.
“I thought we really flipped our mentality around after our not-so-good performance on Saturday. I think we went out there and had fun. We didn't dwell on our mistakes and cleaned up our side.” senior outside hitter Nora Herian states.
In the third set, the Bluejays rallied with the Bravettes, but came out with a win, 28-26, securing a sweep of the Bravettes.
N. Herian led the team with 18 kills, followed by Kyndal Werner with 12, Lydia Cone with six, Kayton Werner with five, and Alayna Herian with three kills.
Josie Painter led the team with 15 digs, followed by N. Herian with 10, Adrienne Riggert with nine, Kenzi Nygren with four, and Ky. Werner and Ka. Werner with three each.
Other stats include Ka. Werner leading the team in ace serves with five, followed by Riggert with three, and N. Herian and Painter with one each.
“I’m very proud of the way we bounced back,” head coach Zach Weber said. “We played a near-complete match. We took control of the tempo early and executed extremely well offensively and defensively.”
The Bluejays will next play in the Holdrege tournament on Saturday, September 26.
Freshman Girls Travel to Norfolk for the Freshman Volleyball Tournament
By Kolten Wragge
The freshman girls volleyball team traveled to Norfolk on Saturday, September 19, during which they played three games.
In the first game of the day, the girls took on the Norfolk Public Panthers, whom they lost to.
In the second game, the girls played Lincoln Standing Bear. During the game, they had an amazing first set, winning 25-7.
“Well the first game we kinda struggled, but the second game we won and the last set we won in a thriller,” freshman Addison Newman said. “I feel the team did quite a good job and I feel like we can get better than third next time.”
In their third and final game, they played Battle Creek, and they won in a 3-set thriller.
Freshman girls coach Kylie Freeman led these girls to a great day.
“I was overall happy with how the girls played. We had a slow start to the day but made up for it in the second and third games. I was pleased with how the girls responded after the loss to Norfolk. We took third place, beating Battle Creek in a 3-set thriller. Overall, I saw many positive things from the girls and was happy with how they competed,” Freeman said.
We congratulate the freshman girls volleyball team on their great performance at the Norfolk girls volleyball tournament.
