by Ashley Hertwig
Tuesday, September 14, the Irish volleyball team had their first home game of the season, hosting the Annandale Cardinals.
“We knew Annandale was going to be a tough team because we scrimmaged them in the pre-season,” said Lexi Pingel.
The first game began with the Cardinals taking an early lead. The Irish picked up their game and soon closed the gap on Annandale’s lead. However, the Irish fell just short losing game one 25-21.
Much like the first game, Annandale took an early lead in game two. Maple Lake wasn’t about to have a repeat of game one, so with good serves and strong defense, they took the lead near the end of the game and won 25-20.
The intensity really picked up in the third game with both teams fighting for the lead. The Irish came out on top with a 25-23 win over the Cardinals.
Only one win away from taking the match, the Irish stayed strong in the fourth game. However, the Cardinals weren’t going down without a fight. The game came down to the final serves and the Irish finished the match after winning the last game 25-23.
“We really wanted to beat Annandale because we lost to them last year and they ruined our five-year winning streak against them,” said Pingel.
Brooke Decker once again had the most set assists during the Annandale game, while Pingel led the team in digs with a total of 15. Shelby Rachel led the team in kills with 12 and served 100%.
Serv. Kills SA Digs
B. Decker 14/18 3 31 10
L. Pingel 11/13 – – 15
J. Holm – 1 – –
D. Hudek – 7 1 –
S. Knott 13/16 3 – 1
E. Bryant – 1 – 1
S. Rachel 10/10 12 – 9
C. Knott 15/17 – 1 2
S. Knudsen 12/17 – – 5
J. Puncochar – 8 – 2
Irish vs. Rockford
Feeling pretty good about their first home win of the season, the Irish then hosted the Rockford Rockets on Thursday, Sept. 16, hoping for another win.
The Rockets seemed to be a strong team during the first game, keeping up with the Irish. The game was kept close until the end when Maple Lake won 25-23.
Feeling good about the first game, the Irish made smart plays in game two, while Rockford struggled to keep the ball off the floor. With a score of 25-19, the Irish came out on top.
The Irish continued their hot streak in the third game. Making few errors, the Irish reached 25 points, while the Rockets only had 11, earning the Irish another win in the week.
Both Sami Knott and Shelby Rachel went 100% for serves during this game, with Rachel also having the most kills (10) and tying with Brooke Decker for most digs with 9 each. Decker also had 19 set assists, all of which helped lead the Irish to victory.
Serv. Kills SA Digs
B. Decker 9/11 4 19 9
L. Pingel 14/16 – – 8
J. Holm – – 4 –
D. Hudek – 5 – –
S. Knott 12/12 2 – 2
E. Bryant – 4 1 1
S. Rachel 7/7 10 – 9
C. Knott 7/8 – – 4
S. Knudsen 13/15 – – 6
J. Puncochar – 6 – –
The Irish volleyball team woke up bright and early on September 18, for a tournament in Big Lake.
Irish vs. Chisago Lakes
Although it was early in the morning, the Irish seemed alert and ready for their first match against the Chisago Lakes Wildcats. Maple Lake was feeling optimistic after they won the first game 25-20. However, the Wildcats woke up during the second game and after a fight for the lead, the Irish lost game two 25-22.
The Irish came back in a deciding game three and beat Chisago Lakes 15-10, earning the win.
Irish vs. Watertown-Mayer
For the second match, Maple Lake faced Watertown-Mayer, hoping to have an easy win against them, just like they did two weeks prior. The Irish played well during the first game and won 25-17. The real upset came, however, when the Irish fell to the Royals in the second game 25-20. The third game was close, with both teams battling for the win. With the score at 14-16, the Royals defeated the Irish.
Irish vs. Big Lake
Looking to pick back up after an upsetting loss to Watertown-Mayer, the Irish played Big Lake in the third match. In game one, the Irish took an early lead and played well to defeat the Hornets 25-14. Much like the first game, the Irish dominated the court in game two and came out with another easy win 25-15, ending the match.
Irish vs. Fridley
The fourth match against Fridley started out to be a close one with the first game ending 25-23 with Fridley taking the win. The Irish came back strong in the second game, however, and beat Fridley 25-16. It came down to the third game, where both teams battled for the win. In the end, Fridley won 15-11, and the Irish took third in the tournament overall.
As a team, the Irish went 89% with their serves. After four games, Brooke Decker had 60 set assists. Shelby Rachel led the team with 46 digs and Sami Knott had 22 kills throughout the tournament.
“I felt like it was a good experience for the team and I think that the losses will make us a better team later in the season,” said Decker.
Serv. Kills SA Digs
B. Decker 30/37 16 60 23
L. Pingel 51/53 – – 29
J. Holm – 3 3 2
D. Hudek – 10 – 1
S. Knott 25/27 22 – 6
E. Bryant – 3 2 4
S. Rachel 36/40 21 1 46
C. Knott 33/39 2 – 14
S. Knudsen 25/28 – 1 17
J. Puncochar – 15 – 2
The Irish girls played Dassel-Cokato on Tuesday, and will be taking the bus to Kimball High School to play the Cubs on Thursday, September 23, starting at 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, September 14, the Irish volleyball team had their first home game of the season, hosting the Annandale Cardinals.
“We knew Annandale was going to be a tough team because we scrimmaged them in the pre-season,” said Lexi Pingel.
The first game began with the Cardinals taking an early lead. The Irish picked up their game and soon closed the gap on Annandale’s lead. However, the Irish fell just short losing game one 25-21.
Much like the first game, Annandale took an early lead in game two. Maple Lake wasn’t about to have a repeat of game one, so with good serves and strong defense, they took the lead near the end of the game and won 25-20.
The intensity really picked up in the third game with both teams fighting for the lead. The Irish came out on top with a 25-23 win over the Cardinals.
Only one win away from taking the match, the Irish stayed strong in the fourth game. However, the Cardinals weren’t going down without a fight. The game came down to the final serves and the Irish finished the match after winning the last game 25-23.
“We really wanted to beat Annandale because we lost to them last year and they ruined our five-year winning streak against them,” said Pingel.
Brooke Decker once again had the most set assists during the Annandale game, while Pingel led the team in digs with a total of 15. Shelby Rachel led the team in kills with 12 and served 100%.
Irish vs. Rockford
Feeling pretty good about their first home win of the season, the Irish then hosted the Rockford Rockets on Thursday, Sept. 16, hoping for another win.
The Rockets seemed to be a strong team during the first game, keeping up with the Irish. The game was kept close until the end when Maple Lake won 25-23.
Feeling good about the first game, the Irish made smart plays in game two, while Rockford struggled to keep the ball off the floor. With a score of 25-19, the Irish came out on top.
The Irish continued their hot streak in the third game. Making few errors, the Irish reached 25 points, while the Rockets only had 11, earning the Irish another win in the week.
Both Sami Knott and Shelby Rachel went 100% for serves during this game, with Rachel also having the most kills (10) and tying with Brooke Decker for most digs with 9 each. Decker also had 19 set assists, all of which helped lead the Irish to victory.
More information and stats appear in this week’s Messenger.
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