Turning the tide in the second game, the South Whidbey High School volleyball team skipped by visiting Sultan 3-1 in the North Sound Conference opener Tuesday, Sept. 24.
The Falcons won 19-25, 25-22, 25-12, 25-14.
Sultan nabbed the first game when South Whidbey committed a flood of mistakes.
“A little of everything” went wrong in the opening set, according to South Whidbey coach Mandy Jones. “We had a lot of unforced errors. And our offense — we didn’t have much of that either — had only six kills.”
The Falcons bounced back in the second game. With the set tied at 6, South Whidbey squirted to an eight-point lead and then withstood a Turk rally to collect the win.
That momentum carried over into the next two games, helping the Falcons pull away for less-tense victories in each.
Jones said she was impressed by Sultan, which “played well” and had a hand in the Falcons’ troubles.
South Whidbey’s execution improved as the night went on, according to Jones.
“Our passing and serving were great,” she added. “The offense didn’t come alive until the third set.”
The mental and physical mistakes can be attributed to youth, Jones said. “Time will help with that.”
“We are floating a lot of of players between varsity and JV and playing a lot of freshmen,” she added.
Overall, she is happy with the progress of the team so far this season.
Jones lauded the play of Kayla Knauer, who anchored the defense with “at least 15 digs,” against Sultan (0-1, 2-3).
Maya Tschetter guided the offense with 21 assists and five aces. Emma Hodson led the club with 13 kills, and Kamryn Wilson chipped in with five aces.
The Falcons (1-0, 2-1) host their annual invitational at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, and then get back into conference play when they travel up the island to face Coupeville (1-0, 4-0) at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1.
Freshman middle Morgan Batchelor goes on the attack. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
Kayla Knauer dives between Kamryn Wilson (5) and Joanie Welever in an attempt to dig a Sultan hit. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
Madi Knauer (4) passes as Emma Hodson, right, and Kayla Knauer look on. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
Maya Tschetter, left, and Morgan Batchelor rise to block a Sultan hit. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
Maya Tschetter back sets for South Whidbey. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
Joanie Welever serves for the Falcons. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
Kamryn Wilson fires a jump serve. (Photo by Jim Waller/South Whidbey Record)
