Wolves take 3 of 4 in consolation tournament; Vikings win one
Tuesday at Missouri Valley High School, the IKM-Manning Wolves took three of four wins beating Audubon and AHSTW 2-1, Logan-Magnolia 2-0, then losing their final match of the night to Missouri Valley 2-1.
“I thought they did a good job overall tonight,” said Wolves Head Coach McKaylie Croghan. “We had two girls run cross country last night on top of playing. I was really proud of their efforts.”
The Vikings lost their first two matches 2-0 to Missouri Valley and 2-1 to IKM-Manning, but capped off their night with a 2-1 win over Logan-Magnolia.
“It was great to see the girls battle to come away with the win against Logan,” said Viking Head Coach Kelsey Fraher. “We had a few rough sets earlier in the evening, but I was happy to see them step up and end the night with a win.”
During the Wolves match with Audubon, Wolves Junior Karlee Arp earned her 500th assist on the season.
“I was so excited,” Arp said. “I truly thank all my hitters. I really could not do it without them. They’re amazing, they’re fantastic, and I’m just so grateful that I got this goal of mine.”
The Wolves did lose set one to Audubon, but came back to win the next two sets 21-8 and 15-4. Following the set one loss, Croghan pulled her team together for a meeting.
“I think we always have a problem getting started,” Arp added. “Once we get into it, we get our energy going, we start to have fun, and we get there.”
The Wolves finished off Audubon for their 11th win of the season. Their next match, they got down early losing set one to AHSTW 21-15, but won the final two sets 21-10 and 15-9. For the Wolves, it’s their first victory against AHSTW since 2019.
“That was nice just to see them pull that out tonight,” Croghan said. “We didn’t play very well last time we saw them. It was a nice little revenge set there.”
The Wolves made quick work of Logan-Magnolia, sweeping them 2-0, then lost their final match to Missouri Valley dropping set three 15-10.
The Vikings started off their night getting swept by Missouri Valley by scores of 21-17 and 21-7. However, they did finish off their night with a 2-1 series win over Logan-Magnolia losing the first set 22-20, but winning the final two sets, 21-18 and 16-14.
“I think we have some really great moments,” Fraher said. “We have shown in several sets and matches that we have the skills to be successful. We just have to figure out how to put every aspect of the game together. Our hitters are continuously working on improving offensively and trying to find different shots to be successful and I think we have seen the benefits of that late in the season.”
For both teams, Regionals begin Monday with the Wolves on the road against the 10-17 Woodbury Central Wildcats. The Wildcats are led by Sophomore Lexi Gilbert 232 assists, Freshman Kenzie Cross with 157 kills, Sophomore Braelynn Jenness with 41 blocks, Junior Genna Widman with 332 digs, and Freshman Brailee Bremer with 72 serve aces.
“We just need to push ourselves and go into with a positive attitude and believe in ourselves,” Arp said.
The Vikings will face the 14-16 Underwood Eagles on the road. The Eagles are led by Senior Allissa Fischer with 538 assists, Junior Carly Nelson with 239 kills, Junior Hailey Ambrose with 35 blocks, Senior Alyse Petersen with 273 digs, and Senior Ruby Patomson with 45 serve aces.
“We have played through a lot of adversity this season,” Fraher said. “Again, I think if we can put all aspects of our game together, we have a great chance of keeping our season going. We need to make sure our communication and effort are there and we will be just fine.”
