Weiser takes Payette in three sets

by  Zane  Davis
 The Lady Wolverines had a short schedule last week, their road game against McCall was cancelled due to a shortage of volleyball officials. That match will be rescheduled for a later date.
 Weiser’s only match for the week was a home pairing against the visiting Payette Pirates.
 Prior to the match, the Wolverines honored 5-year-old Danni Harris, a Weiser girl who is currently battling a brain tumor. The team provided her with a personal couch located in the grandstands where she watched the match in relative comfort.
 Harris was also the honorary captain, sporting a No. 34 jersey for the evening.
 The grandstands at Weiser’s Tom Falash Gymnasium were filled with fans clad in yellow, in recognition of the type of cancer Danni is currently fighting.
 The Wolverines also conducted a one-minute “bucket run,” members of the varsity team running through the stands, collecting money for their honorary captain. Both Weiser and Payette spectators dug deep for the young cancer fighter, donating over $1,500 on her behalf. The money will be used for expenses related to an out-of-state trip for an intensive, six-week round of radiation treatments.
 Following the introductions and the bucket run, the Lady Wolverines went to work in effort to reignite their winning streak after some recent tough losses.
 The Wolverines wasted no time getting the momentum rolling on their side of the court with kills from senior, Emma Tolman and Danica Lockett, a stuff block by junior, Mattie Shirts, and an ace serve by sophomore, Abi Wilkins. The Wolverines soon found themselves with a 7-1 advantage over the Pirates.
 Despite a couple ball-handling errors, the Wolverines continued to add to their lead with strong serving, well-placed hits, and big blocks.
 The Pirates couldn’t keep up with the Wolverines momentum, which was aided by four kills by senior, Whitney Cordes, two kills from Wilkins, one kill from junior, Jasi Yraguen, and stuff blocks from Tolman, Shirts and Yraguen. The Lady Wolverines dominated the first set with a 25-11 victory.
 Sophomore Isabel Rodriquez began the second set behind the service line for the Lady Wolverines, serving for an early 4-1 lead. By the time sophomore libero, Baily Coleman, and senior setter, Ivy Morris, were done serving, Yraguen and Cordes had each added two kills apiece to their stats and the Lady Wolverines led the Pirates 11-3.
 Allowing the Pirates only 1-point on a side-out, freshman, Paisley Noyer, slammed down a hard kill, putting the ball back in the hands of the Wolverines and placing senior, Taylor Bushong, behind the service line.
 During Bushong’s service tenure, Yraguen added a cross-court kill and the Wolverines continued to take advantage of every Pirate error and adding to their second set lead 14-4.
 Once again, the Pirates were only granted one-point on a Wolverine net violation before Coleman recorded a kill from the back row for the side-out.
 Yraguen began serving for the Wolverines, delivering a pair of consecutive aces.
 Leading 17-6, the Wolverines took offensive possession again following a long rally filled with big saves and impressive digs by Coleman in the back row. The rally culminated in a Pirate free ball out-of-bounds, placing Lockett in the serving position. A sneaky dump on the second contact by Lockett and a kill from Tolman enabled Lockett to serve for 3-points and add to the Wolverine lead 21-6.
 The Pirates managed to benefit from a streak of Wolverine errors for 5-points, but a service error halted their surge. Tolman and junior, Paige Johnson, collaborated on a big stuff block while Rodriguez served and Cordes came up big with two consecutive kills in the final points of the set, allowing the Lady Wolverines to take the second set 25-13.
 Looking to sweep the match, the Lady Wolverines went to work early again in the third set, and the Pirates were visibly rattled, unable to return the first 5 serves of the set. By the time Lockett and sophomore, Rylee Roberts, finished serving in the first two rotations, Shirts and Tolman had worked together for 2 stuff blocks. Shirts had one solo block and a kill, Lockett had one kill, and the Lady Wolverines had an impressive 12-1 lead. A serve-receive error, a hitting error, and some nice kills allowed the Pirates to add 7-points to their credit, but their comeback was halted with a service error, placing Bushong behind the line.
 A service ace and two kills from Noyer put the set seemingly out of reach for the Pirates, with the Lady Wolverines leading 19-7. In the final points of the set, Wilkins, Shirts and Tolman each had a kill and Lockett served up an ace to take the third set 25-10 and the match 3-0.
 Whitney Cordes had a big night, leading the Lady Wolverines with 7 kills. Emma Tolman, Abi Wilkins, and Jasi Yraguen each had 4 kills apiece. Mattie Shirts had 7 blocks and 3 kills for the evening, and Paisley Noyer also had 3 kills. Danica Lockett and Ivy Morris had 12 and 10 assists, respectively.
 The Lady Wolverines will travel to Homedale this week and host the Fruitland Grizzlies on Thursday, Oct. 7 at Weiser High School.