The Vicksburg varsity volleyball team’s season ended in a District semifinal showdown with Harper Creek on home court. However, the Bulldogs didn’t go down easily, forcing five sets in a matchup that could have gone either way.
“It was a great match, nothing to be upset about, no regrets, they left it all on the floor,” Head Coach Jennifer Buikema said. “Harper Creek played a great match. So did we, and it was just going to come down to who made the least number of errors.”
Vicksburg had already lost to the Beavers during a tournament match in the regular season. It looked like the Bulldogs had their number early in match. Vicksburg stormed to an early 5-3 lead before Harper Creek evened the score 5-5. An Addison Naplin kill led to a small run capped off with an ace from Brynn Swetz to make it 10-6. The Beavers couldn’t really put anything together after that, and the Bulldogs took the set 25-19.
Harper Creek then rebounded to take set two. The third set was another wild, back-and-forth affair. The Beavers were up 14-12 when Lena Lancaster served up three straight aces. This changed the momentum, but only momentarily. Harper Creek battled back into the set when the Bulldogs had a 24-22 game point. They ultimately won 27-25. With their backs against the wall, the Bulldogs badly needed a win in set four.
“We just talked about playing for each other, playing to win, and having confidence in ourselves and each other. And they came back and they did that,” Buikema said.
The Beavers made the Bulldogs work hard for every point in set four. Most of the set saw only a one-point difference as the teams traded the lead. Again, Vicksburg took a 24-18 game point lead. However, Harper Creek wasn’t done fighting and battled back to a 24-24 tie. The girls stopped the run of points there, taking the set 26-24.
The Bulldogs continued to fight through set five. The score was tied 10-10 before Harper Creek finally pulled away for the 15-12 win.
While the season didn’t end as Vicksburg had hoped, it was still a highly successful season, finishing with a 30-16-1 record. Naplin and Swetz both earned first team all-conference. Havera and Jenna Schramer both earned honorable mention. Havera also hit a milestone with 1,850 career assists in the final weeks of the season. Natalie Sertic and she are the only graduating seniors. That means the Bulldogs are in an excellent position for another potential run next year.
