Vikings take first round exit against Eagles

The AHSTW Vikings volleyball team were swept by the Underwood Eagles (25-8, 25-19, 25-6) in the Class 2A Region 2 Game, ending their season Monday.

“It's always disappointing to lose and have your season end,” said Viking Head Coach Kelsey Fraher. “I just told them to keep their heads held high, and that despite our record, we had a lot of positive things happen this season.”

The Vikings struggled out of the gate dropping set one, came back stronger in set two, but lost by 19 points in the final set. Throughout the match, they were led by Junior Halle Goodman with 12 assists and nine digs, while Senior Loralei Wahling had two kills and one block.

“We were really struggling in serve receive, which meant we were sending a lot of free balls over the net,” Fraher said. “That gave Underwood the opportunity to run their offense perfectly. We also struggled to get touches at the net to help slow their offense down.”

The Eagles were led by Senior Allissa Fischer with 34 assists, and Senior Alyse Petersen with 11 digs.

The Vikings wrap up their season with an overall record of 5-30 with wins against CAM, Nodaway Valley, IKM-Manning, Diagonal, and Logan-Magnolia. It was the final game for Seniors Wahling, Claire Mertz, Sienna Christian, Grayson Gettler, Kiera Alvarez, Macy Thornton, and Kloe Brannan.

“These seniors have been a big part of our program over the last four years,” Fraher added. “We will have a lot of spots to fill next year, and will miss their contributions to the team.”

Despite losing seven seniors, Fraher is optimistic about the future of Vikings volleyball.

“We have some great kids returning next year and will have a lot of varsity experience coming back, which I think will be huge for the development of our program,” she said.