This story is sponsored by: Wisconsin Homes of Marshfield
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
STRATFORD – A few days after rolling to an undefeated title at the Auburndale Invitational, the Stratford volleyball team was back on the court and kept that momentum going.
The Tigers jumped out to a 14-2 lead in the opening set, battled through for a come-from-behind win in the second, and finished off a 3-0 sweep of Marawood Conference South Division rival Auburndale on Tuesday night at Stratford High School.
Stratford, ranked No. 4 in this week’s Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association Division 3 state poll, won 25-11, 25-23, 25-19, to improve to 18-3 overall and 2-0 in the Marawood South.
Stratford ripped off eight points in a row early in the first set and took a double-digit lead after a pair of service aces by Daisy Yoder.
After a block kill by Alana Steines ended the 14-2 run by Auburndale, Stratford quickly regained control. Kills from Emerson Roy and McKenzie Novotny helped the Tigers build a 20-6 lead, and a kill by Kalyn Schueller ended the first set with a 25-11 win for Stratford.
“It was kind of fun in the first game because after a timeout I said, ‘Wow, those things that we’ve been working on in practice, we’re seeing them spewing out, one after another on the floor,” Stratford coach Brooke Kafka said. “It was so great to see that transfer from practice to game day.
“We just played them on Saturday, we knew this was going to be a battle and that they are a scrappy team.”
The second set was much tighter. Three kills from Lily Bellanti helped Auburndale build a 14-9 lead and the Eagles went up by as many as seven at 19-12 after an ace from Jalynn Scherr.
Then Stratford got to work. The Tigers went on a 9-3 run, that included kills from Schueller, Tria Tubbs, Roy and Novotny, to tied the game at 22-22.
Auburndale got a sideout on a kill by Bellanti to regain the lead, only to see Stratford scored the next three points to pull out a 25-23 win.
The third set was tight as well as the Eagles came back from an early three-point deficit to tie the set at four different points, the final time at 15-15 after an ace by Scherr and a Stratford error.
Similar to the second set, the Tigers took off from there, scoring four points in a row, the final point on a block kill by Yoder. After a sideout, Schueller and Yoder had kills and the Tigers went on to finish off the match with a 25-19 win.
“One thing that is really great for us is our team comradery,” Kafka said. “There is a lot trust among the girls and there are a lot of options to move the ball around on the court.”
Schueller finished with 10 kills, Novotny had six and Yoder five, while Roy finished with 11 assists and Laney Pankratz had 10 for the Tigers. Carly Pankratz led the defense with 11 digs.
Bellanti had 10 kills and 11 digs, and setters Chesney Nagel and Scherr finished with 14 and 11 assists, respectively. Scherr also added nine digs for Auburndale.
Auburndale will host Owen-Withee, Cornell and Elcho for a quadrangular on Thursday. Stratford will enjoy the rest of the week off before hosting Marathon for another conference match next Tuesday, Sept. 24.