The Warsaw volleyball team did more than win a Northern Lakes Conference match against Wawasee Thursday night at the Tiger Den. While the Lady Tigers (13-5, 4-1 NLC) got a four-game victory (22-25, 25-12, 25-20, 25-14) over the Lady Warriors (11-11, 1-3 NLC), they also helped raise funds for the Kosciusko County Cancer Care Fund by celebrating its second annual Dig Pink match. With each team donned in pink apparel, and playing with a pink ball, the Lady Tigers used their sport as a way to raise awareness, while also raising funds for a program that helps patients with cancer deal with expenses such as mortgages and other bills while receiving treatment. "We really like to do these kind of community events, where we give back and play volleyball at the same time," Warsaw coach Mike Howard said. "It's a lot of fun. It's a lot of work for the people who organize it, but it's a great thing." Wawasee coach Jeff Phillips spent the previous two seasons, along with his wife Jen Phillips, as an assistant at Warsaw, so he's already been a part of one Dig Pink match, and realizes the importance of it. "I've already talked with our athletic director at Wawasee, and hopefully, we're going to have a Dig Pink match next year," Phillips said. The event was organized by breast cancer survivor Cheryl Lacheta, the mother of Warsaw junior Jamie Lacheta, and her daughter came out to impress. With the emotion of night, Lacheta was on another level to begin the match, posting nine of Warsaw's first 16 points via kills. However, despite the display, Wawasee's team effort overcame the hard-hitting Lacheta, as the Lady Warriors reeled off the final six points of the game to win it 25-22. "Obviously they come in with more firepower, more height and more experience," Phillips said about Warsaw. "So, when you come out and beat them in Game 1, it's different, than say, beating them in Game 3 after they've won the first two games and they put in some back-ups. Hopefully our girls realize if you win Game 1, you've beaten the No. lineup on the other team." Howard did have his starters out there, but there were times when it was hard for him to recognize them. "(Lacheta) was hitting the ball pretty good, but then we kind of lost our focus as much as anything," he said. "It was kind of easy at the beginning, then they went on a little run and it got tighter. Then, we just started making some bad decisions." Those decisions got better as Warsaw won the next three games, and the Lady Tigers bounced back to get their 13th victory of the year. The loss was Wawasee's 11th, but the Lady Warriors have also won 11 and showed Warsaw that it can hang with them. "We know the quality of coaches that Jeff and Jen are, and the people he's going to bring on his staff," Howard said. "We told the team (Wawasee's) much improved from last year and they've won way more games this year than they won last year." As if the team loss wasn't bad enough, Wawasee also lost its top hitter when sophomore Lydia Katsaropoulos went down with an ankle injury two points into the fourth game, but the Lady Warriors did show they had other players who could step up. On the year, Katsaropoulos has been the team's top offensive threat, but against Warsaw she had just three kills. To pick up the slack, freshman Alli Ousley came up with 11 kills and also served the last five points of the Game 1 victory. "Alli Ousley had a great night," Phillips said of the freshman, who also had 14 digs and two aces. "Offensively, she served well and she played great defense. She was our MVP tonight. It's great to have someone step up like that." On Warsaw's side, Lacheta was on top of her game, but the Lady Tigers also had other options, as seniors Steph Shuter and Nicole Nulf had eight and seven kills, respectively, and sophomore Emily Poe added another six. "We've really been working to diversify our offense," Howard said. "We know teams are going to camp on Jamie. She's our big swinger, but we have to get other people involved and put them in situations where they can be successful. We have talented players, it's just about getting them in the right situations." Junior Chloe Hubner set up the team's kills with 48 assists, and defensively, junior Alex Sanchez had a team-high 20 digs and freshman Katie Voelz posted four blocks. Wawasee's assists leader was senior Megan Conley with 21 and senior Gabi Routson had a match-high 23 digs. Both teams are back in action Saturday, as Wawasee travels to the Homestead Tournament and Warsaw hosts its Tiger Invitational, bringing in such teams as Class 2A No. 1 Muncie Burris, Class 3A No. 4 Bellmont and Class 2A No. 8 Southwood. "There really aren't a lot of slouches in the tournament," Howard said. "Sometimes we don't get the outcome we want, but it's about preparing for the end of the season and getting our kids better." And following Thursday's Dig Pink match, the girls did show there's more to life than winning a volleyball match. "It's a great thing for high school teams to get involved in, to show people you're worried about other things instead of just who won or lost," Phillips said of the Dig Pink match. "That's an important message to send to all the high school kids."
