New volleyball coach gets mixed results in EHS’ first quad
Emporia High overcame early jitters to win Ashley Nehls’ first match as head coach, then dropped two matches to start its season 1-2 in a quad on Tuesday at Topeka High.
Playing its first match against the host Trojans, the Spartans lost their first set by a 25-19 score, then came back to win the next two by scores of 25-16 and 25-21 to take the match. Lindy Arndt had eight kills for EHS against the Trojans, Kelly Bacon added seven and Lauren Longbine had six, along with two solo blocks and three assist blocks. Megan McRell had 18 assists.
“First game, we came out... we seemed nervous. I was nervous a little bit, too,” Nehls said. “But after that first one, we lost the first set, and after that, they played a lot better against Topeka High. It was more like the team I’ve been seeing in practice.”
Emporia’s next opponent was Washburn Rural, which is fielding a young team this year after winning three consecutive Class 6A State titles. Rural dispatched the Spartans by scores of 25-15 and 25-12, but Nehls believed EHS played its best against Rural. Arndt again led the Spartans with five kills, Longbine had four and Courtney Waldner had three. McRell had six assists, and Bailey Sosa had five.
“Megan McRell, just coming out (after) playing junior varsity last year, she’s really filled that leadership role really well,” Nehls said. “She has a lot of intensity and a lot of heart out on the court. I also thought that Sarah Kolmer, when we got into tough situations, she was kind of our go-to girl as a hitter, between her and Lauren Longbine. They find a way to put it down.”
The Spartans’ final match of the quad was a two-set defeat to Rossville by scores of 25-22 and 25-20. Kolmer had six kills and two solo blocks for Emporia, and Longbine had five kills.
Nehls said the Spartans’ biggest problem was that they dug themselves into a hole and didn’t leave themselves much margin for error, waiting until it was too late in the game to make their charge.
“We just have some mental mistakes and need to get a little bit tougher, which, we’ll get there,” Nehls said. “This was just our first game.”
The Spartans will head back to Topeka on Tuesday, traveling to Seaman for another quad. Santa Fe Trail and Mill Valley will complete the four-team field.