The Emporia High volleyball team got its season underway Tuesday night with a pair of victories at the Washburn Rural Invitational.
The Lady Spartans defeated Santa Fe Trail and Topeka High each in straight sets to finish the night with a 2-1 record.
The lone loss on the evening came against the defending Class 6A champion, Washburn Rural, which returns its entire roster off last year’s 35-10 squad.
“This was a great start to our season,” coach Kendra Bloomquist said. “We did a lot of nice things all night long.”
EHS began the night with a sweep of Santa Fe Trail, 25-18, 25-22. Taylor Hollond led the attack for Emporia with six kills, while Hilary Heinrichs and Sadie Webb each added four.
“Taylor and Hilary both did a nice job early of keeping us in pace offensively,” Bloomquist said. “We did a really nice job with our serve receiving and passing — that was good all night.”
The Lady Spartans then squared off against Washburn Rural, a team Bloomquist called “heads and tails above us.”
The Lady Blues swept EHS, 25-12, 25-10, but Hollond said the Lady Spartans believed they competed as best they could against a physically superior squad.
“They were really good, but we stuck there with them at times,” Hollond said. “We didn’t give up.”
Emporia capped its night with a sweep of Topeka High, 25-17, 25-15. Webb and Heinrichs each tallied six kills for a balanced EHS offensive attack, with Hollond chipping in four kills and Jessica Decker adding three.
“We beat a team we should have beaten, and last year, we didn’t always do that,” Bloomquist said. “We really didn’t make a lot of unforced mistakes, and we took care of the ball.”
Washburn Rural Invitational
Tuesday at Topeka
Washburn Rural def. Topeka High, 25-8, 25-10; Washburn Rural def. Emporia, 25-12, 25-10; Washburn Rural def. Santa Fe Trail, 25-10, 25-14; Emporia def. Santa Fe Trail, 25-18, 25-22; Emporia def. Topeka High, 25-17, 25-15; Santa Fe Trail def. Topeka High, 25-15, 25-23.
Bennett just misses out on top-10 finish
Maryann Bennett finished with a 42 to lead the Emporia High girls golf team Tuesday at the Salina Central Invitational.
Bennett’s score put her just outside the medalists, as Topeka West’s Kaylee Rudolf placed 10th with a 41. The Lady Spartans as a team came in 10th out of 13 teams with a total score of 203, better than Great Bend (205), Salina Central (207) and Clay Center (207).
Rachael Clopton and Makenzie Harder were the next highest finishers for EHS, carding scores of 52 and 53, respectively. Hannah Watkins finished with a 56, Melissa Heinitz carded a 58 and Seung-Yun Shin had a 68.