Goshen netters soar
Published 3:00 am Tuesday, September 22, 2015
The varsity Goshen Eagles volleyball team kept rolling Monday night in a rematch with the Luverne Tigers. After the Eagles dismantled the Tigers a week ago, Luverne came into Goshen looking to settle the score. The Eagles didn’t allow that to happen, sweeping the Tigers 25-4, 25-10 and 25-16.
The sweep by the varsity closed out the evening for the volleyball program. The junior high squad lost in three sets in nail-biting fashion 21-25, 25-10 and 11-18 followed by the junior varsity team sweeping Luverne in straight sets 25-13 and 25-6.
Coming off a grueling weekend playing in the Enterprise Invitational, the Eagles used this lopsided affair to get everyone in the game and work on a few areas of need.
“We ran a different rotation today,” said Eagles head coach Amy Warrick. “We were also able to work in some extra players that needed the practice. It helped us look at different things, and it helped me figure out who is passing well and who isn’t passing well.”
Contrary to prior matches, the Eagles ran out a lineup against the Tigers that did not feature a libero. Making Monday night’s matchup an adjustment period, the Eagles passed with flying colors.
“It was a completely different rotation than what we have been running with,” Warrick said. “It helps to shake them up a little bit and make them think and change.”
With the win, the Eagles improved their record to 16-8 on the season with only one of those losses coming in a non-tournament setting.
Currently the Eagles are ranked 10 in the state, and Warrick sees her team’s goals getting higher and higher with each win.
“For the longest time I evaluated them as being a good volleyball team, and it seemed like we were stuck at being just a good volleyball team,” Warrick said. “We changed the rotation this weekend and made some changes. To me we grew a lot this weekend. I saw improvement on our passing. I have watched a lot of film and one weakness was always passing.”
Being able to pass efficiently is what makes the difference in being a good set up team and a team that struggles to keep any consistent offense.
“It allows our hitters to be able to get set up,” Warrick said. “Now we have passes at the net during Kati’s (Thomas) rotation. You saw it tonight; Kati got a lot of kills. If we don’t get the passes, Kati doesn’t get to put the ball away.”
Thomas finished the match with 14 kills and three aces, while Casey Allen finished with seven kills and one ace.
Carmen Kelly finished with 24 assists.
Over the weekend the Eagles played in the Enterprise Invitational where they matched up with some of the best volleyball teams in the state. The grueling process allowed Warrick to continue to see a lot of different players on the court while at the same time perhaps improving the depth on the team.
The Eagles started the tournament with a win against Providence followed up by wins against Wicksburg and New Brockton.
The Eagles were able to advance out of the opening round and into the championship bracket, defeating Houston Academy before being defeated by Murphy.