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Lady Cats take care of business at home with win over Ottawa

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone
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Louisburg junior outside hitter Erin Lemke goes up for a kill Tuesday during the Lady Cats’ home match with Ottawa. Louisburg moved to 4-0 in Frontier League play with a 3-0 win over the Cyclones.


 

The Louisburg High School volleyball team took one step closer to achieving one of its goals Tuesday when it hosted Ottawa for a Frontier League dual.

The Lady Cats remained atop the Frontier League standings following their 25-14, 25-18 and 25-23 victory over Ottawa to move their record to 4-0 in league play. They are halfway to their goal of being crowned league champions.

As much as the Lady Cats liked the win, they still know they have a lot to improve on despite being the No. 2 ranked team in Class 4A.

“Overall I thought we did ok,” Louisburg coach Jessica Compliment said. “After the second set I told the girls that we were making too many unforced errors, just not going after the ball and missed serves. That third set, Ottawa just came out and played to win and got a lot more aggressive and got some momentum on their side.”

That momentum in the third set provided some excitement for the home crowd as Ottawa nearly forced a fourth that would have given the Cyclones some added confidence on the road.

Ottawa rallied from a 15-10 deficit to take a 19-18 lead in the third set and the two teams traded points from there. The Cyclones held a 23-22 advantage late, but the Lady Cats got kills from Haley Cain and Carson Buffington, and an ace from Cain, to preserve the win for Louisburg.

“I would just like to see us play more of our game from start to finish, rather than kind of yo-yo around,” Compliment said. “When it comes down to it, the girls have a way to buckle down and just finish and push through. I was happy to see them finish it out in three and not let Ottawa back in the match.”

Senior Anna Dixon gave Louisburg a boost all night at the net with some loud kills. Dixon led the team with 22 kills, while Cain and Riley Kallevig each added six. Buffington, Carleigh Pritchard and Erin Lemke each totaled four kills.

Louisburg’s Haley Cain (left) and Anna Dixon team up for a block at the net Tuesday against Ottawa.

Louisburg (12-5) also recorded six aces on the night, including three from Kallevig and two from Davis Guetterman. Guetterman and fellow freshman setter Rinny McMullen spread the offense around well.

McMullen led Louisburg with 22 assists and Guetterman was right behind her with 19. McMullen also had several tips at the net that provided Louisburg with a spark offensively.

Prime Accounting

“I wanted the setters to try and move the ball around a little more and I think that we did that,” Compliment said. “I wanted to see the middles get involved more, and as the night went on, we did a better job of getting Carleigh going more, and Haley as well. I thought Carson did a good job tonight as well and she is stepping out and being someone who is a threat at the net. It is fun to see that different side of her after setting for the last few years.”

Defensively, the Lady Cats also played well as libero Reilly Ratliff-Becher led Louisburg with 13 digs on the night and McMullen finished with 10. Kallevig and Dixon had nine and eight, respectively, in the win.

The Lady Cats will get another chance to play in front of their home crowd Saturday when they host the Louisburg Invitational. Pool play is set to begin at 8 a.m., with bracket play to follow in the afternoon.

 

LOUISBURG SWEEPS FORT SCOTT TRIANGULAR

Following its home win over Ottawa, the Louisburg volleyball team made the trek down to Fort Scott for triangular with the Tigers and Girard.

The Lady Cats were able to leave with a pair of easy wins. Louisburg defeated Fort Scott 25-15 and 25-16 to win the first match of the night and then followed it up with a 25-18 and 25-11 victory over Girard.

Against Fort Scott, Louisburg got a lot of different contributions at the net as seven different players registered kills. Anna Dixon led the way with seven, while Haley Cain and Riley Kallevig each added three apiece.

Kallevig also provided the Lady Cats with a strong presence from behind the service line as she recorded a team-high six aces and the team had 10 overall. Kallevig and Dixon also led Louisburg with seven digs each on defense.

Setter Rinny McMullen had 11 assists in the match and Davis Guetterman added six of her own.

In its win over Girard, Louisburg once again dominated at the net as Dixon led Louisburg with 13 kills in just the two sets. Kallevig had a big game as well with six kills and Cain added five.

Kallevig also had another good match serving with three of the team’s six aces, while junior libero Reilly Ratliff-Becher had a team-high 12 digs on defense. McMullen and Guetterman had 14 and 10 assists, respectively, as they ran the offense well.

“The team played well last night,” Louisburg coach Jessica Compliment said. “Anna, Reilly, and Riley did a good job all night in the back on serve receive. Davis and Rinny moved the ball around a little more, and the team was able to try a few different offensives sets we’d been working on.”