Lady Bulldogs Find Themselves in Loss to Van Buren
By Terry Futrell
The Van Buren County Eaglettes came into Wartburg Tuesday evening undefeated in District 3A volleyball play and well on their way to repeat as district champions. They returned home to Spencer one step closer to that goal after defeating the Lady Bulldogs in three sets (25-14, 25-6, 25-19). Sometimes the numbers do not tell the complete story – such was the case as the two teams fought one of the toughest battles in the third and final set that we have seen all year.
Three things characterize a Van Buren County volleyball team – hard driving serves, disciplined setups, and strong play at the net, both offensively and defensively. It took the Lady Bulldogs two sets to adjust to the Eaglettes level of play. Perhaps intimidation was a factor. Perhaps the height advantage of Van Buren was a factor. Perhaps it was simply because the Lady Bulldogs seldom face a team of Van Buren’s caliber.
Van Buren never trailed in the first set and pulled away to a 25-14 win. Both teams made very few unforced errors. The key difference was the aggressiveness of Van Buren in attacking at the net.
After taking a 1-0 lead in the second set, the Lady Bulldogs were completely stymied by the Eaglettes, who cruised to a 25-6 win. With the score tied at 1-1, Van Buren scored eleven consecutive points with Emma Scoggins serving. Though playing with few unforced errors, the Lady Bulldogs could never overcome that deficit.
Then came the third set, one of the finest exhibitions of volleyball that we have seen all season. Wartburg took the lead at 1-0 and extended their lead to 10-6 before the Eaglettes began to close the gap. Wartburg found success by exhibiting the same strengths as Van Buren. The Lady Bulldogs took care of their serves, making only one service error. They exhibited much more discipline in their setups. But most importantly, they began to play Van Buren aggressively at the net.
One of the most intense battles that we have seen all season took place between Wartburg’s Madilyn Armes and Van Buren’s Greta Rigsby. With a 4-5 inch height advantage, Rigsby had dominated the net in the first two sets. But in the third set, Armes became a “giant” as she constantly battled Rigsby at the net, challenging every play. Whereas Rigsby focused on devastating hard spikes that were difficult to return, Armes delivered well placed shots to open areas of the court. Each constantly attempted to block the others’ shots.
Much credit goes to the Lady Bulldogs playing the back line. Hard, driving shots by Van Buren that found their way through the Lady Bulldogs in the first two sets were now stopped by successful digs and set up for return attacks.
In spite of Wartburg’s improved play, the Eaglettes refused to go down and tied the set at 11-11. The teams battled point-for-point, tying the set five more times before Van Buren pulled ahead to win the set 25-19 and the match 3-0.
Van Buren proved that they are the team to beat in District 3A and are favored to repeat as District 3A champions. Even in defeat, the Wartburg Central Lady Bulldogs found themselves, proving that they can compete with any team in the district. Only time will tell the impact of the Lady Bulldogs’ newly found confidence and disciplined play.
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