Aplington-Parkersburg goes 2-0, AGWSR 0-2 at NICL triangular
The #15 (2A) Aplington-Parkersburg volleyball team swept its matches in Tuesday’s NICL triangular hosted by AGWSR, while the #8 (1A) Cougars were swept by both the Falcons and #11 (2A) Wapsie Valley, as aired on 99 The Wave.
The Cougars celebrated Senior Night between the second and third matches
In the opener, Wapsie Valley defeated AGWSR 2-0 (26-24, 25-23). The Cougars led by as many as 12-6 and 16-11 in the first set before falling in bonus points. A 22-19 Cougar lead in set 2 wasn’t enough, as the Warriors scored six of the final seven points to end the match. Karis Lippert led with seven kills.
In the second match, Aplington-Parkersburg defeated Wapsie Valley 2-0 (25-20, 25-18). A closely contested first set went back and forth until an 18-18 tie, after which the Falcons never trailed. The Falcons pulled away for the sweep in set 2. Peyton Klooster led with six kills.
In the finale, the Falcons swept AGWSR 2-0 (25-19, 27-25). In the first set, AP used runs of 5-0 and 7-0 to pull away for the win. The Cougars controlled set 2 from the start, and built an 11-3 lead. But the Falcons battled back for the sweep. Klooster led the Falcons with 10 kills, and Trevyn Smith led AGWSR with five.
Aplington-Parkersburg Head Coach Candace Kleespies says serving was a key aspect in the two wins. The Falcons had seven aces in each match.
"We really started this summer, we told them we're going to serve a lot more aggressively, we have to," Kleespies says. "We've got to pull teams out of system as much as we can, and with that comes more errors. As long as it's an aggressive swing we're taking, we're OK eating some of those. But at pivotal points, you can't have them. I really feel like our serve has really helped our game as a whole this year."
AGWSR Head Coach Jill Smith says her team will grow from battling in close matches.
"Three sets tonight, we lost by a total of six points," Smith says. "I feel like we're right there. It's just eliminating some of those unforced errors, working to trust our training in those pressure situations. I felt like we did a better job of that as the night went on. The only way you learn how to perform in those pressure situations is to be in those pressure situations. Hopefully we can take something away from this, and next time we're in these situations, we're better."
AGWSR is now 8-13 and will be at South Tama Thursday. Aplington-Parkersburg is 17-4 and will be at a tournament hosted by Dunkerton Saturday.
