Mavs Prevail in Double-Header

The North Country Lady Mavericks volleyball team is now at 5-0, thanks to the wins that they picked up last week.

The Mavs defeated the Bainville Bulldogs 3-1 on Friday, September 9, in Bainville North Country was then tasked with a double-header in Hinsdale, which originally was scheduled to start in Hinsdale with a match against the Savage Warriors and end in Saco against the Fairview Warriors.

After discussion amongst the athletic directors, the teams all played in Hinsdale. The Mavericks fell behind 0-2 to Savage but won the last three sets. North Country then defeated Fairview 3-1.

"Overall we had a great week," Mavericks Head Coach Charlene Wasson said. "We are a little exhausted and slightly banged up dealing with an ankle injury and just some, stiffness and soreness in some but as far as the mentality of this team they really work hard at not letting too much bother them. From the JV to the varsity this season, this group of girls works very well together which makes this coach extremely proud."

The scores of the Savage game were NC 22 - S 25, NC 18 - S 25, NC 25 - S 13, NC 27 - S 25, NC 15 - S 10.

The Mavericks were down 20-24 in the fourth set, but fought back to force the fifth set. The fifth set was finished with an ace from Cienna Strommen, who was one of three seniors recognized during Hinsdale High School's Senior Night. Also recognized were Mattea McColly and Ashton Smith. All Maverick seniors including Whitewater's Kora LaBrie were honorary captains along with Whitewater junior Paige Wasson.

Strommen was asked how it felt to serve the game winning ace.

"It felt great," Strommen said. "I was super excited."

P. Wasson was asked what went wrong in the first two sets of the game.

"Our passes weren't very great, so we couldn't really set up the ball and hit it," she said. "But once we got that down, we were better."

In the final two sets, Wasson and teammate Teagan Erickson were able to connect on some game-shifting hits. Erickson led the team with an astounding 20 kills, her highest total, ever. Wasson had 10 kills.

"When we get a good pass, good set, and our hitters can really hit the ball, it is really a game changer," P. Wasson said. "It helps us get more points."

Wasson led by example setting up teammates with 26 assists, she also had a block late in the game.

Erickson had nine digs and Libero Kora LaBrie had eight digs.

Knowing that the team had a double-header, Strommen was asked after the first win, what the team's approach was.

"I would say that our defensive coverage and passing was a huge goal for us," Strommen said. "Serving, of course, always helps. It's about taking things one step at a time and having a good mentality about it."

The scores of the Mavs win over Fairview were NC 25 - F 18, NC 26 - F 24, NC 23 - F 25, and NC 25 - F 23.

Erickson had 11 kills and one block. Kendall Schffelmear had nine kills. Wasson had 14 assists, four aces, and one block. LaBrie had 14 assists.

"I have to say by the time this match had started we were on our third match in 24 hours," Coach Wasson said. "It was a mental battle for us and physical fatigue. We struggled to serve in this match only getting 75% from the service line and had a few miscues on who was supposed to take what ball in certain rotations. This was a good indication to the team of what Districts, Divisionals, and State would feel like."

The scores in North Country's win over Bainville were NC 17 - B 25, NC 25 - B 15, NC 25 - B 20, and NC 25 - B 14.

T. Erickson had 10 kills, three aces and one block. Wasson had nine kills and 13 assists. LaBrie had eight digs and three assists. McColly had one block.

"In this match, we came out really flat serving," Coach Wasson said. "In the first set we were 10-17 for 58% from the service line. Starting a match this way is never easy. We dug ourselves a hole and had to get out of it in the next set. After we regrouped from the service line then our passing and hitting got going and we settled into the match."

Bainville's team consisted of six freshmen, two sophomores, and three juniors, but Coach Wasson said that they were scrappy and determined to make the most of every touch on the court.

"This made it a great competitive game for us which is only going to help us down the road," Coach Wasson said.