Wildcats end regular season with sweep of Wamego, Olathe North

Louisburg seniors Allie Kennedy (left) and Claire Brown go up for a block Thursday at Olathe North High School.

OLATHE — Going into its final two matches of the season, the Louisburg volleyball team wanted to head into the postseason on a positive note.

Mission accomplished. 

Louisburg traveled to Olathe North on Thursday for a triangular with Wamego and the Wildcats left with a pair of wins. The Wildcats defeated Wamego 25-14 and 25-22 and then followed it up with a 25-17 and 25-23 victory over Olathe North.

The Wildcats have now won six out of their last seven matches on the season as they now prepare for the sub-state tournament in Baldwin on Saturday. They are currently 18-17 on the season.

“Finishing our regular season with those two wins was the perfect way to launch us into sub-state week,” Louisburg coach Leanna Willer said. “Last year we went 0-2 at that same triangular, so going 2-0 this year was great recognition for the hard work that these girls have put in this season. 

“After those games, we were able to take the weekend off to rest, relax, catch up on sleep, and prepare our minds and bodies for postseason and the team was determined to go into fall break on a high note.”

Louisburg took control of the match against Wamego and played strong all over the court.

Senior Allie Kennedy led Louisburg with eight kills, two blocks and an ace, while junior Madelyn Williams and senior Claire Brown had seven and six kills, respectively.

Junior setter Megan Quinn finished with 24 assists in the match. Senior libero Adyson Ross led the team defensively with nine digs and also had a team-high two aces. Junior Ashlyn Berck and Williams also had an ace.

Against Olathe North, Ross was big from behind the service line for the Wildcats with a team-high three aces and also had nine digs.

Quinn finished with a team-best 18 assists to guide the Wildcat offense and also led the team in digs with 10.

At the net, Brown and Kennedy each paced the Wildcats with seven kills each and Williams added six in the win. Junior Hailey Sword added six digs in the win. 

“We played a solid two matches of volleyball,” Willer said. “I think the girls would agree that we definitely were not perfect or always at our best, but we remained confident and in control throughout the night. We saw quite a few positives. After being plagued with a stomach bug earlier in the week, it was nice to get all the girls back out on the court.

Freshman Delaney Nelson also made her varsity debut against Wamego and recorded her first kill.

“Delaney did a great job,” Willer said. “The rest of the team was so excited for her to play – I think Claire yelled the loudest of the entire night when she got her first kill. It has been pretty awesome to see our upperclassmen love, support and encourage our freshmen throughout the season.”

Now the Wildcats are focused on the postseason. Louisburg is the No. 9 seed and will play No. 8 Fort Scott at 3 p.m in the Baldwin sub-state. Baldwin is the tournament’s No. 1 seed.

All tournament games will be played at Baldwin Jr. High School on Saturday, with the championship match to be held at 4 p.m.

“We are so excited for the postseason,” Willer said. “We talk about it all the time, so we are glad that this week is finally here – this is what we have been working for since the end of May. This team has so much potential and we are looking to play our best at this time in the season. 

“Our attitudes are positive and we will bring competitive energy to practice throughout the week gearing up for Saturday. We’ve been competing with great teams all season long and we are ready to show everyone what Louisburg volleyball is all about.”