SOUTH WAYNE — Both Argyle and Black Hawk coaches were in agreement Sept. 7 — a long volley that sparked a late Argyle rally in the first set was the turning point.

“I feel like we come out ready to go and 1, 2, 3 bad things happen and we just get down on ourselves,” said Jordan Halvorsen, Black Hawk’s coach after Argyle’s 25-22, 25-18, 25-13 sweep of the Warriors.

Black Hawk had dominated much of the first period. While the Orioles jumped out to a 3-point lead after three serves — and held until 7-4 — it was Black Hawk that got the first real rally of the night going. After a push kill by Argyle’s Megan Johnson gave the side-out to the Warriors, Black Hawk server Bailey Abney served nine straight balls. Of the nine points scored in a row, six were via Oriole errors. At the same time, Black Hawk’s Raylin Peterson had turned into a force at the net, blocking several shots and hammering home a couple of kills. 

“The last time these guys were in this gym they lost in the regional semifinals, and they were probably a little hesitant to figure out what was happening,” Argyle coach Connie Wunschel said. “We weren’t sure what they (Black Hawk) would have on that side, because it is a big change from what they’ve had.”

Argyle rallied back to within a point at 16-15, but the Warriors pushed it back to 20-16 and seemingly had the momentum with just five points to go.

“As we’ve talked about before, just loosening up and having a little fun (is our team goal). You didn’t see anyone get upset when they made a mistake. That’s the big kicker right now — have fun with it, play loose, make sure that you’re communicating,” Wunschel said. “I hope they can stay with it.”

At 20-16, a long rally ensued, with both teams making timely digs. Breann Flannery then scored on a kill for the side-out. Tori Lantz and Maggie Godfrey then got in on the action for Argyle, each scoring on a point on a spike to make it 20-19. A Mallorie Peterson kill briefly gave the Warriors possession of the serve. 

Godfrey took over the match at that point, slamming home back-to-back spikes to even the score, then the flustered Warriors failed to return a volley, putting Argyle ahead. Lantz spiked another ball to the court to make it 23-21 Argyle. A brief miscommunication on a floating pass gave Black Hawk the side-out and the point, but the Warriors failed to return volleys on the next two serves, ending the set.

“They’ve got that big hitter (Godfrey) over there, and she is very good. She’s hard to defend, and even when we get blocks on her it’s hard to keep it on that side,” Halvorsen said.

Halvorsen talked with her team between frames in an attempt to keep their heads up. It worked briefly, as Black Hawk jumped out to a 10-6 lead in the second set. Then Flannery took over at the service line, and the match soon followed.

Flannery strung together a 10-point Argyle run, with three aces in the mix. 

“She was on fire with her serves again. She’s been having problems with her lower back and we’re not sure if she’s able to hit certain spots, but she got it in there a couple of times tonight. She’s phenomenal back there and has really worked hard on that part of her game,” Wunschel said.

The closest Black Hawk would get again in the set would be 21-18.

The Orioles wasted no time in the third frame, going up 8-3, then 15-5 on another streak by Flannery, who finished the night with six aces. 

“They knew where to put the ball; they have a phenomenal setter too — our girls said they had a tough time figure out where she was going to go with the ball. That was challenging for us. But overall, I think we covered well, we just had a lot of offensive plays not go well on our way tonight,” Halvorsen said. 

Godfrey finished the night with 17 kills, while Flannery had seven and Grace Ganshert five. Flannery added 22 digs, with Ganshert tallying 13 Johnson dished out 33 assists for the Orioles, who have now won back-to-back Six Rivers East matches since a season-opening loss to league-favorite Monticello. 

“We were working on a lot of stuff with (Godfrey) on her approach from the back row, and we could see it come out today, and that’s what’s exciting for me — they are still learning even though they have been playing at a high level for so long,” Wunschel said.

Raylin Peterson led Black Hawk with six kills. Tara Wellnitz and Jenna Meier each had two blocks. Ellie Edler dished out nine assists and Tatum Baumgartner finished with six digs. 

Halvorsen and her squad knew this would be a tough year of transition. A bulk of the roster — including four all-conference players — graduated after last season, and Halvorsen took over for longtime coach Rachel Wolff.  Halvorsen and her crew are still trying to find their identity this season.

“I said that in the locker room tonight, too, that this is a new team and it does take time to develop. A lot of our players didn’t play together last year — and we lost a lot of players from last year, too,” Halvorsen said. “We’re trying to use that as motivation — go out there and show everyone you can play too. From Day 1 a couple of weeks ago to now is another world. I know it’s a quick season, but I’m really hoping that in the next week or so we can really start clicking.”