Warsaw Beats NLC Foe Wawasee
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
SYRACUSE - Warsaw's volleyball match ended Thursday the same way the previous 47 NLC matches have ended - with a win.
Warsaw's NLC win streak reached 48 straight with a 15-9, 15-10 win over Wawasee. Afterward one Warsaw Tiger admitted she was a little more nervous than the others before the match.
"I was nervous, but I don't think our girls were," Warsaw coach Jamie Byron said. "I knew Wawasee just beat Concord in three, this was a home match, and they had a ranked team coming in. I knew they weren't going to let us go away without a good fight."
Indeed, Wawasee was the team coming in with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Warsaw was ranked No. 14 in the latest poll, so the Tigers were expected to win. But Wawasee one week earlier had knocked off a 14-4 Concord team, and the Warriors entered their battle with Warsaw with a 12-7 record.
Wawasee coach Jason Fleming had scouted Warsaw, and he knew what his team would have to do to have a chance to win.
"I knew if we were going to play with Warsaw, we would have to key on Sarah Calhoun and Lisa Estep," Fleming said. "We would have to block well against them and dig. They're both very good hitters, especially from the outside position."
But Calhoun and Estep, who have led Warsaw all season, could not be contained. Calhoun finished with seven kills, while Lisa Estep had five.
Ann Fribley also had five kills, and Byron said she was a big key to this win.
"I thought Ann Fribley did a nice job, especially in the middle," she said. "I thought they would tip us a lot more. I really had her working on it in practice. Tonight she was passing everything that came to her. Lisa Estep served extremely well, as well as passed. That's a normal game for her."
Melissa Bolles turned in 21 assists and six digs for the Tigers, not bad considering she was a question mark coming in.
"Melissa Bolles hurt her back a little at the Ben Davis tournament, but she came back and looked pretty healthy," Byron said.
Most of all, Byron was pleased with the way her team chatted it up out on the floor.
"More than anything, we communicated well," Byron said. "We haven't always done that in the past, but tonight was an exception. There wasn't a lot of balls that dropped in between two players."
Wawasee threw a few scares into Warsaw, like when the Warriors came from an 8-2 deficit in the second match to tie it 9-9. Fleming thought the evening only helped his team.
"I knew we could play with them," Fleming said. "We had a little trouble with our passing off serve receive. Overall, I was pleased with the performance our girls gave.
"Down the road, I don't see this loss setting us back. I see it pushing us forward. We just played one of the best teams in the northern region. Warsaw was ranked 14th in the latest AP poll. With a loss 15-9 and 15-10 to a team of that caliber, the girls are stepping up their play, and I feel we can accomplish our goals the rest of the season."
Kara Mathew led Wawasee with eight assists and two blocks. Kari Beer had four kills and six digs, while Theresa Lundin was 5-for-6 serving with an ace and four service points.
Byron soon discovered her worries before the match were meaningless. She's just in her first year at Warsaw, but already she's beginning to get a sense of the Warsaw-Wawasee rivalry.
"As it turned out, everything worked out fine," Byron said. "My girls rose to the occasion. They were up for this match. It's a very storied rivalry between these two schools. I'm only somewhat familiar with it, but I can see why. There's definitely going to be some close matches."
Like predecessor Penny Salm, Byron downplays any talk of the NLC winning streak.
"I don't even know what it is," she said. "It's always there, but I have only four of those. To me, we're 4-0. I haven't heard one girl mention it. I'm sure it's there in the back of their minds, because they've come up through this program for four years. They keep it in perspective."
Warsaw, 11-5 overall and 4-0 in the NLC, hosts the Warsaw Invitational at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Wawasee, 12-8 and 1-3 in the NLC, competes in the Homestead Invitational at 9 a.m. Saturday. [[In-content Ad]]
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SYRACUSE - Warsaw's volleyball match ended Thursday the same way the previous 47 NLC matches have ended - with a win.
Warsaw's NLC win streak reached 48 straight with a 15-9, 15-10 win over Wawasee. Afterward one Warsaw Tiger admitted she was a little more nervous than the others before the match.
"I was nervous, but I don't think our girls were," Warsaw coach Jamie Byron said. "I knew Wawasee just beat Concord in three, this was a home match, and they had a ranked team coming in. I knew they weren't going to let us go away without a good fight."
Indeed, Wawasee was the team coming in with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Warsaw was ranked No. 14 in the latest poll, so the Tigers were expected to win. But Wawasee one week earlier had knocked off a 14-4 Concord team, and the Warriors entered their battle with Warsaw with a 12-7 record.
Wawasee coach Jason Fleming had scouted Warsaw, and he knew what his team would have to do to have a chance to win.
"I knew if we were going to play with Warsaw, we would have to key on Sarah Calhoun and Lisa Estep," Fleming said. "We would have to block well against them and dig. They're both very good hitters, especially from the outside position."
But Calhoun and Estep, who have led Warsaw all season, could not be contained. Calhoun finished with seven kills, while Lisa Estep had five.
Ann Fribley also had five kills, and Byron said she was a big key to this win.
"I thought Ann Fribley did a nice job, especially in the middle," she said. "I thought they would tip us a lot more. I really had her working on it in practice. Tonight she was passing everything that came to her. Lisa Estep served extremely well, as well as passed. That's a normal game for her."
Melissa Bolles turned in 21 assists and six digs for the Tigers, not bad considering she was a question mark coming in.
"Melissa Bolles hurt her back a little at the Ben Davis tournament, but she came back and looked pretty healthy," Byron said.
Most of all, Byron was pleased with the way her team chatted it up out on the floor.
"More than anything, we communicated well," Byron said. "We haven't always done that in the past, but tonight was an exception. There wasn't a lot of balls that dropped in between two players."
Wawasee threw a few scares into Warsaw, like when the Warriors came from an 8-2 deficit in the second match to tie it 9-9. Fleming thought the evening only helped his team.
"I knew we could play with them," Fleming said. "We had a little trouble with our passing off serve receive. Overall, I was pleased with the performance our girls gave.
"Down the road, I don't see this loss setting us back. I see it pushing us forward. We just played one of the best teams in the northern region. Warsaw was ranked 14th in the latest AP poll. With a loss 15-9 and 15-10 to a team of that caliber, the girls are stepping up their play, and I feel we can accomplish our goals the rest of the season."
Kara Mathew led Wawasee with eight assists and two blocks. Kari Beer had four kills and six digs, while Theresa Lundin was 5-for-6 serving with an ace and four service points.
Byron soon discovered her worries before the match were meaningless. She's just in her first year at Warsaw, but already she's beginning to get a sense of the Warsaw-Wawasee rivalry.
"As it turned out, everything worked out fine," Byron said. "My girls rose to the occasion. They were up for this match. It's a very storied rivalry between these two schools. I'm only somewhat familiar with it, but I can see why. There's definitely going to be some close matches."
Like predecessor Penny Salm, Byron downplays any talk of the NLC winning streak.
"I don't even know what it is," she said. "It's always there, but I have only four of those. To me, we're 4-0. I haven't heard one girl mention it. I'm sure it's there in the back of their minds, because they've come up through this program for four years. They keep it in perspective."
Warsaw, 11-5 overall and 4-0 in the NLC, hosts the Warsaw Invitational at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Wawasee, 12-8 and 1-3 in the NLC, competes in the Homestead Invitational at 9 a.m. Saturday. [[In-content Ad]]