No. 8 Bears edge No. 6 Comets in thriller
by Norv and Mary Coblentz · Sports · October 16, 2014
The much-anticipated Oct. 7 match between arch-rivals West Branch (No. 8 in Class 2A) and West Liberty (No. 6 in 3A) was all it was cracked up to be.
There were reporters, photographers, a TV crew, and many loud fans of both teams.
The gym rocked with a tournament-like atmosphere.
Each team wanted the win, the fight was fierce, and it went all the way to five sets.
And in the end, the Bears prevailed, winning 3-2 and taking the River Valley Conference south championship. Scores were 23-25, 25-18, 25-18, 22-25, and 15-7.
The Bears did not win the first set.
“We were playing tight, and they were doing a nice job of keeping us out of our offense,” West Branch Head Coach Josh Lukavsky said. “They played some really good defense, and I thought we came out tipping the ball an awful lot. We don’t want to do that, we want to get swings. That was something we changed after that first game. I thought we got more aggressive with our swing, and we made some mistakes in the fourth game, but it all evened up in the end.”
The Bears jumped out to a 4-0 lead to start the first set on a West Liberty error, an ace by Haley Poula, and two kills by Madison Russell. The Comets tied it up at 4-4, then Russell traded kills with the Comets to a 7-7 tie.
West Liberty hit the ball in the net, then Bailey Lukavsky had a block for a point. A West Liberty kill and a West Branch error tied it at 9-9.
It was back and forth until the 15-15 mark when a serving error gave the Comets a one-point advantage. A West Branch kill attempt went out of bounds, then a West Liberty ace and a point by the Comets at the net made it 19-15, Comets.
The Bears took a time out. West Liberty scored with a kill, then Trystin Luneckas sent the ball over the net on the second touch for a point for the Bears.
The Comets scored a point at the net for a 21-16 lead. Then the Bears scored the next five, including an ace by B. Lukavsky, to tie it at 21-21.
The teams traded points to a 23-23 score. A kill by the Comets and an error by the Bears ended the set at 25-23, and the visitors had a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Comets had an early lead in the second set, leading 3-0 to start and by as many as four points.
With the score 9-11, a block by B. Lukavsky, a block by Poula and a kill by Russell tied the set at 11-11.
There were also ties at 12-12, 13-13, and 14-14 before the Bears pulled ahead.
A Comets serving error, a block by B. Lukavsy, a kill by Russell, and another block by B. Lukavsky made it 18-14, Bears.
Russell got another kill, then the Comets had a hard time handling a ball off the ceiling for a 20-14 West Branch lead. After a West Liberty time out, the Comets scored two points on net play and a West Branch error.
A carry by the Comets, a kill by Russell, and another point at the net by the Comets made it 22-17. Russell got a kill, the Comets got a kill, and the score was 23-18. The Bears finished the set with an error by the Comets and a kill by Poula for a 25-18 score, tying the match at 1-1.
The score of the third set was the same as the second, but after a 2-2 tie, the Bears led the whole way.
Luneckas had two aces early on, and a block by B. Lukavsky put the Bears up 8-3. The Comets fought back to within three points at 10-7.
Poula scored a point at the net, then the Comets got a kill. An error by the Bears and an error by the Comets made it 12-9. Jenae Murry got a kill, and Poula served an ace for a 14-9 score.
The Comets scored four consecutive points, pulling to within one. A couple of Comet errors and a point at the net by B. Lukavsky made it 17-13.
The Comets fought back again, scoring points on a kill, an ace, and a four-hits call on the Bears for a 17-16 score. A West Liberty block try went out of bounds, and the teams traded points for a 19-17 score.
A West Branch kill try went too far, and the Comets were back to within one point at 19-18. West Branch scored the next six points to finish off the set. Murry got a kill, B. Lukavsky got a block, then B. Lukavsky served three aces.
The set point came on a West Liberty block attempt that flew out of bounds. The Bears took a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Comets took the fourth set 25-22. Except for a 1-0 West Branch lead, the Comets led the entire way. Highlights of the set for the Bears included five kills by Poula, four by Russell, and three by B. Lukavsky. Luneckas also served an ace.
The match was tied 2-2, going to the fifth set, a tie-breaker played to 15 points.
The Comets got a kill for the first point in the fifth set. B. Lukavsky got a kill to tie it. Two West Liberty hits out of bounds made it 3-1, West Branch.
West Liberty got a kill, then B. Lukavsky and Russell had a kill each. A West Liberty hit out of bounds made it 6-2, and the Comets took a time out.
The Bears had a serving error, then the Comets were called for a carry. Another West Branch serving error made it 7-4, West Branch.
A kill by Poula and a kill by Allyson Simpson made it 9-4. Another West Branch serving error made it 9-5. Abby Knoop scored a point at the net, then the Comets got a kill.
A West Liberty ace made it 10-7. West Branch scored the next five points for the set and match win.
Russell had two kills and a block, and Poula finished off the Comets with an ace.
The final score of set five was 15-7, and the Bears won the match 3-2.
“It was a good competition, and both teams were ready to play,” West Liberty Head Coach Ruben Galvan said. “Like I told the kids, this game will not define what we’ve accomplished this year. We’ve got to keep going. Our strength has been our teamwork and believing in each other. We’ll continue to do that.”
J. Lukavsky isn’t one to bring extra attention to his daughter, B. Lukavsky, but there was no getting around it for this match.
“I thought Bailey was controlling the net,” the coach said. “She had some great swings for us. She just worked her tail off to get touches on balls.”
B. Lukavsky finished the night with nine kills, 15 digs, seven blocks, and six aces.
West Branch stats: Abby Knoop 2 kills, 2 digs, 2 blocks, 16-17 serving; Dalana Kron 12 digs; Bailey Lukavsky 9 kills, 15 digs, 7 blocks, 23-25 serving, 6 aces; Trystin Luneckas 1 kill, 22 assists, 1 dig, 16-18 serving, 2 aces; Jenae Murry 4 kills, 2 blocks; Haley Poula 14 kills, 1 assist, 22 digs, 3 blocks, 23-24 serving, 4 aces; Madison Russell 18 kills, 16 digs, 1 block, 14-15 serving, 1 ace; Allyson Simpson 5 kills, 18 assists, 5 digs, 1 block, 9-9 serving
West Liberty stats: Kyleigh Becker 5 kills; Audra Bridenstine 10 kills, 9 digs, 16-16 serving; Hailey Daufeldt 13 kills, 1 assist, 23 digs, 1 block, 15-15 serving, 1 ace; Kayla Kaalberg 9 kills, 3 digs, 1 block; Molly Kelly 3 assists, 26 digs, 20-20 serving, 1 ace; Summer Kopet 1 assist, 12 digs, 16-17 serving, 1 ace; Briana Morales 5 kills, 1 dig; Cassedi Simon 8 kills, 40 assists, 28 digs, 1 block, 10-11 serving, 1 ace; Maddie Simon 18 digs, 14-14 serving, 3 aces
West Branch 3, Tipton 0
Oct. 9 at Tipton
The Bears beat the Tigers 25-8, 25-14, 25-13. Haley Poula had 10 kills. Madison Russell had 17 digs and served 18-18 with three aces. Allyson Simpson had 17 assists, and Trystin Luneckas had 16 assists. Abby Knoop led in blocks with five.
West Branch stats: Abby Knoop 3 kills, 3 digs, 5 blocks, 8-8 serving, 1 ace; Dalana Kron 6 digs; Bailey Lukavsky 9 kills, 1 assist, 14 digs, 3 blocks, 15-17 serving; Trystin Luneckas 16 assists, 4 digs, 7-9 serving, 1 ace; Jenae Murry 7 kills, 1 block; Haley Poula 10 kills, 2 assists, 12 digs, 1 block, 14-15 serving; Madison Russell 5 kills, 1 assist, 17 digs, 2 blocks, 18-18 serving, 3 aces; Allyson Simpson 8 kills, 17 assists, 4 digs, 4-4 serving
Tipton stats: Maggie Bormann 19 digs, 3-3 serving; Addie Butler 1 dig; Alyssaq Crock 14 digs, 11-11 serving, 1 ace; Bekka Falkers 1 kill, 2 digs, 1 block; Kalyn Howe 2 kills, 2 digs; Bailey Kepford 3 kills, 2 assists, 3 digs; Megan Martin 10 digs, 3-4 serving; Kailee Meyer 4 assists, 10 digs, 6-6 serving; Michele O’Haver 11 kills, 5 digs, 2 blocks, 7-8 serving; McKenna O’Leary 1 block; Sam Pruess 11 assists, 10 digs, 5-5 serving
West Branch 0, CR Prairie 2
Oct. 11 at Cedar Rapids Prairie tourney
The Bears lost to their hosts 21-13, 21-15.
“In the first match of the day, Allyson Simpson could not finish the first set because of an injury,” J. Lukavsky said. “I think this took something from the girls mentally, and in turn we lost to sixth-ranked 5A Cedar Rapids Prairie. The players recovered very well and really came together the rest of the day, defeating a very good 4A Western Dubuque and 2A West Burlington.”
West Branch stats: Claire Bridges 2 digs, 4-4 serving; Abby Knoop 1 kill, 1 dig, 2 blocks, 5-7 serving, 1 ace; Bailey Lukavsky 2 kills, 4 digs, 1 block, 3-4 serving, 1 ace; Trystin Luneckas 9 assists, 1 block, 5-5 serving; Jenae Murry 1 kill; Haley Poula 3 kills, 6 digs, 5-6 serving, 1 ace; Madison Russell 5 kills, 1 dig, 3-3 serving; Allyson Simpson 2 sets
Prairie stats: Rylee Blood 1 dig, 8-9 serving, 1 ace; Kate Busswitz 5 kills, 3 digs, 3-3 serving; Kendra Gaskill 7 assists; Mallory Jones 9 assists, 2 digs, 7-7 serving; Jenni Lockhart 1 assist, 4-5 serving, 2 aces; Rachel Shelangoski 2 kills; Makenzie Soeken 1 kill, 2 blocks; Megan Sprengler 8 kills, 1 dig, 5-5 serving; Makenzie Stoffer 1 kill, 1 block; Kristin Wahlert 3 digs, 9-9 serving
West Branch 2, W. Dubuque 0
Oct. 11 at CR Prairie tourney
The Bears defeated Western Dubuque in two sets, 21-12, 21-15. Haley Poula led in serving with 16-17 serves and four aces. Abby Knoop and two blocks. Trystin Luneckas had nine assists, and Madison Russell led in kills with 12.
West Branch stats: Claire Bridges 5 digs, 4-5 serving; Abby Knoop 1 kill, 2 blocks, 6-7 serving; Dalana Kron 1 dig; Bailey Lukavsky 2 kills, 3 digs, 2-2 serving; Trystin Luneckas 9 assists, 1 dig, 1 block, 5-5 serving; Haley Poula 3 kils, 5 digs, 16-17 serving, 4 aces; Madison Russell 12 kills, 2 digs, 1 block, 1-1 serving
Western Dubuque stats: Ashley Botsford 11 assists, 6 digs, 2-3 serving; Blair Burds 4-4 serving; Jessica Cartee 1 kill, 1 dig; Paige Deppe 1 kill; Morgan Hefel 1 dig; Payton Hilby 1 kill, 2 digs, 5-5 serving, 1 ace; Addie Koerperich 5 digs, 3-3 serving, 1 ace; Megan Maahs 1 kill, 1 dig, 1 block, 5-5 serving; Morgan Pitz 1 kill, 7 digs, 5-6 serving; Lauren Prier 3 digs; Taylor Wilgenbusch 6 kills
West Branch 2, West Burlington 0
Oct. 11 at CR Prairie tourney
The Bears’ serving and blocking had much to do with their 21-7, 21-6 win over West Burlington. Haley Poula served 8-9 with four aces and had two blocks. Madison Russell served 13-14 with four aces. Claire Bridges served 8-8 with two aces. Trystin Luneckas served 4-4 with an ace. Bailey Lukavsky had five blocks. Jenae Murry had two blocks, and Abby Knoop had a block.
West Branch stats: Claire Bridges 2 digs, 8-8 serving, 2 aces; Abby Knoop 5 kills, 1 block, 5-5 serving; Dalana Kron 4 digs; Bailey Lukavsky 1 assist, 1 dig, 5 blocks, 1-1 serving; Trystin Luneckas 2 kills, 8 assists, 3 digs, 4-4 serving, 1 ace; Jenae Murry 1 dig, 2 blocks; Haley Poula 2 kills, 2 digs, 2 blocks, 8-9 serving, 4 aces; Allie Russell 2 digs; Madison Russell 2 kills, 10 digs, 13-14 serving, 4 aces
West Burlington stats: not available
West Branch 2, Johnston 1
Oct. 11 at CR Prairie tourney
Scores were 21-19, 13-21, 15-10
“This was a great match for us as Johnston was very balanced and had great quickness and power,” J. Lukavsky said. “Our girls made great adjustments as the match went on to win 2-1.” Madison Russell led in kills with seven. Trystin Luneckas had 15 assists. Abby Knoop had three blocks and 12-12 serving. Bailey Lukavsky had seven blocks. Hailey Poula had eight digs and two blocks. Claire Bridges had seven digs and served 5-5.
West Branch stats: Claire Bridges 1 assist, 7 digs, 5-5 serving; Abby Knoop 2 kills, 4 digs, 3 blocks, 12-12 serving; Bailey Lukavsky 4 kills, 6 digs, 7 blocks, 6-7 serving; Trystin Luneckas 2 kills, 15 assists, 1 dig, 1 block, 8-9 serving; Jenae Murry 1 block; Haley Poula 5 kills, 8 digs, 2 blocks, 10-11 serving; Madison Russell 7 kills, 4 digs, 1 block, 6-7 serving
Johnston stats:Rachel Atlinson 4 digs; Hayley Dotseth 12 kills, 15 digs, 12-12 serving, 3 aces; Rachel Godwin 2 kills, 2 digs, 12-13 serving; Taryn Knuth 10 kills, 1 block, 3-4 serving; Keely Larkin 12 digs; Ellie Roquet 2 kills, 2 assists, 2 digs, 7-7 serving; Denise Ssozi 7 kills, 5 digs, 1 block, 3-6 serving, 1 ace; Kristen Stucker 32 assists, 8 digs, 8-8 serving, 1 ace; Emma Grace Walter 2 kills, 2-2 serving
West Branch 1, Holy Trinity 2
Oct. 11 at CR Prairie tourney
“The last match of the day was against #1 1A Holy Trinity and one of the top players in the state,” J. Lukavsky said. “This was a very tightly contested match as each set was only lost by 2 on either side. Our girls did an excellent job of coming together and competing throughout the day. This was a great day for us leading into our conference tournament and then regionals.” Scores were 20-22, 21-19, 13-15. Madison Russell had 10 kills and was 9-9 serving with an ace. Haley Poula had eight kills and was 14-14 serving with three aces. Bailey Lukavsky had eight digs and three blocks. Abby Knoop had three blocks and was 10-10 serving with an ace. Trystin Luneckas had 28 assists, two blocks, and an ace.
West Branch stats: Claire Bridges 6 digs, 8-8 serving; Abby Knoop 3 kills, 2 digs, 3 blocks, 10-10 serving, 1 ace; Bailey Lukavsky 6 kills, 8 digs, 3 blocks, 0-4 serving; Trystin Luneckas 1 kill, 28 assists, 2 blocks, 6-7 serving, 1 ace; Jenae Murry 1 kill; Haley Poula 8 kills, 4 digs, 14-14 serving, 3 aces; Madison Russell 10 kills, 7 digs, 1 block, 9-9 serving 1 ace
Holy Trinity stats: Kristin Brinck 1 assist, 6 digs, 8-8 serving, 1 ace; Mikaela Foecke 25 kills, 1 assist, 6 digs, 1 block, 9-9 serving; Madlyn Orton 5 kills, 1 dig, 1 block; Lauren Pothitakis 12 digs, 8-8 serving, 1 ace; Ali Randolph 15 assists, 6 digs, 10-10 serving, 1 ace; Kirsten Shaffer 2 kills, 1 block; Maria Vonderhaar 15 assists, 6 digs, 9-9 serving; Nicole Wilkens 5 kills, 4 digs, 10-11 serving
|
|
|
