Cyclones sweep Perry in 4A volleyball opener
HARLAN (Oct. 18) -- The start and the finish could’ve been better, but Harlan Community dominated the rest of the match and took care of business here Wednesday night, sweeping Perry 25-14, 25-11, 25-16 in a Class 4-A regional volleyball opener.
Taking their first lead at 10-9 in the opening set, the 15th-ranked Cyclones rattled off 12 straight points to take control and cruised past the Jayettes behind a lethal serving attack and some efficient passing.
HCHS, now 23-12 overall, served 96 percent with 16 aces (compared to three service errors) and allowed no aces by Perry, which finished its season at 7-26.
Next up for the Cyclones is a tough Region 2 semifinal at 4th-ranked Sergeant Bluff-Luton (38-3) Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. The opposite half of the bracket will feature ADM (23-11) at Glenwood (16-14). The regional final is set for Monday, October 30, at the site of the highest-rated team remaining.
HCHS head coach Willie Baughman, while disappointed with an early 8-4 deficit in set one and another late lull toward the end of the match, called the overall performance “really good.”
“We started out a little sluggish but I think a lot of that was nerves,” he said. “The first regional match is a little bit tough to come out of the gates, but then we kind of eased in and we went on a roll there... the end of the first set and then all of the second set. We definitely controlled it."
HCHS 25-25-25, Perry 14-11-16
Harlan Community Statistics
Serving: 71/74 (95.9%), 16 aces -- Sidney Craig 24/24, 7 aces; Lexi Larsen 12/13, 2 aces; Lexie Holloway 10/11, 3 aces; Delaney Kelly 10/10, 1 ace; Olivia Petersen 9/9, 2 aces; Kara Weis 6/7, 1 ace.
Serve receive average: 2.68 (38 att.) -- Kelly 2.83 (6 att.), Craig 2.69 (13 att.), Holloway 2.67 (6 att.), Larsen 2.62 (13 att.).
Attacks: 59/70, 34 kills (11.3 per set), .329 kill eff. -- Haley Leinen 11/14, 9 kills (.429 eff.); Petersen 13/14, 7 kills (.429); Larsen 13/15, 7 kills (.333); Macie Leinen 7/9, 5 kills (.333); Holloway 11/14, 4 kills (.071); Anna Ahrenholtz 3/3, 2 kills (.667); Hayley Hopkins 1/1.
Assists: 33 -- Weis 19, Holloway 11, Ahrenholtz 2, Petersen 1.
Blocks: 8 -- M. Leinen 4 (1 solo), Ahrenholtz 2, Petersen 1 (solo), Holloway 1.
Digs: 37 -- Craig 8, Larsen 7, Weis 7, Kelly 6, Holloway 5, Petersen 2, H. Leinen 1, Ahrenholtz 1.
Class 4A, Region 2 Volleyball
First Round Scores • Wednesday, October 18
Harlan Community 3, Perry 0 (25-14, 25-11, 25-16)
ADM, Adel 3, Boone 0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-14)
Semifinal Pairings • Tuesday, October 24
#15-ranked Harlan Community (23-12) at #4 Sgt. Bluff-Luton (38-3), 7:00
ADM, Adel (23-11) at Glenwood (16-14), 7:00 p.m.