#4 (2A) Grundy Center went 2-0 at a home NICL triangular Tuesday, #9 (2A) Aplington-Parkersburg went 1-1 and #11 (2A) Sumner-Fredericksburg went 0-2, as aired on RadioOnTheGo’s YouTube channel.
In the opener, the hosts defeated the Cougars 2-1. The Spartans had the upper hand early, but the Cougars had the momentum in set 2. Grundy Center had the necessary firepower to bounce back in set 3, winning 25-17, 20-25, 15-12.
In the neutral site match, the teams were point-for-point most of the way through. After trading leads throughout set 3, the Falcons pulled away to win 25-27, 27-25, 15-12, bouncing back from a first set loss that could’ve gone either way.
In the finale, the Spartans pulled out for the most lopsided set of the night in the opener. But the Falcons began a comeback effort in the second set, leading for the majority. When it mattered most, the Spartans took advantage of opponent mistakes and secured the night’s only sweep, 25-16, 25-22.
AP coach Candace Kleespies says the team battled hard among great competition.
“We talked to the girls yesterday about coming into this night and just how both teams are going to be really high level teams,” Kleespies says. “We were going to have to play some of our better ball. And I was proud of the girls. Honestly, our serve receive, other than some touches, maybe a handful of touches, I feel like our serve receive did well tonight. We got a little bit better touches on our blocks, which then really helped us transition into hitting. We knew that they were both going to be battles. And we told the girls that it could be some long points and some long sets.”
Grundy Center coach Lori Willis.
“We work on our defensive positioning, we work on what we need to do when certain people are doing certain things,” Grundy Center coach Lori Willis says. “And then we talk about taking away what they want to do. And I also think that Trinity Jirovsky played so hard tonight for us. She’s new to going all the way around, and she’s did a great job. She started doing that Saturday. And her leadership is phenomenal, too. And I can rip on her, and she’s just like, OK. And she just takes it, moves on, and she does great.”
Returning to action Saturday, the Falcons will be at a tournament at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, and the Spartans will be at a tournament at Janesville.
