MONROE - The Monroe High School volleyball team was on the brink of taking the second set off Monona Grove on Thursday after surging to a 10-point lead.
However, the Silver Eagles stormed back from a 17-7 deficit, winning 18 of the next 25 points and stunning the Cheesemakers 25-22.
Monona Grove junior McKenna Warnock got hot in the second set and helped the Silver Eagles clip the Cheesemakers in three sets, 25-23, 25-22, 25-22.
"We told them in the huddle not to get comfortable," Monroe coach Heidi Witt said during a timeout in the Silver Eagles' 18-5 run in the second set. "They learned a hard lesson tonight. It's not over until the scoreboard says 25. It's OK to be a little mean on the court. We have to finish off games. We will get better at finishing games. Tonight proves that these girls can compete in this conference. Overall, we did a lot of great things."
Monroe (0-2, 0-1 Badger South) jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first set of their conference and home opener. After the Silver Eagles came back to tie it later in the set, Monroe sophomore Cassi Gersbach had a kill to give the Cheesemakers an 8-7 lead. It was a tight first set with the lead changing hands several times. The Silver Eagles battled back to take an 18-14 lead.
It didn't take long for the Cheesemakers to answer. Monroe senior Sydney Mathiason, who had nine kills and two blocks, came up with a block to tie the set at 20. Senior Alysha Witt moments later delivered an ace and Mathiason had a kill that gave the Cheesemakers a 23-22 lead. A service error by the Cheesemakers tied the match at 23, and the Silver Eagles pulled out the first set when the Cheesemakers had an errant hit out of bounds.
"It was very exciting," Mathiason said. "It was good to see we were right there with one of the good teams in the conference. We just have to keep playing and not get comfortable. We have to keep playing until we get to 25. I think we will have a super season."
The Cheesemakers got on a roll in the second set, building a 17-7 lead. The Silver Eagles rallied behind Warnock who had a match-high 18 kills. The 6-foot-1 Warnock and 6-1 Lydia Kneubuehl each had kills to slice the Cheesemakers' lead to 20-16. After the Cheesemakers were called for touching the net, Monona Grove senior Kearsten Kochan slammed a kill to tie the set at 22. Warnock powered a kill to give the Silver Eagles a 23-22 lead, and they didn't look back.
"Their really big hitter (Warnock) really started getting on," Witt said of the second-set comeback by the Silver Eagles. "Once she got on, we struggled with where we needed to be on our coverages."
Monroe freshman Zoee Pond had six digs and senior Meredith Hose posted two aces. Alysha Witt understands that with the addition of some new players the Cheesemakers are still developing and adjusting to new tendencies on the court.
"I thought we started out every set really good," said Alysha Witt, who had a team-high 16 assists. "As we went on we got a little too comfortable, and we lightened up at the end of the sets. We were not getting our passes up and our hits in. I think we just need to work together on knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses out there."
The third set was a see-saw battle just like the first set. The Cheesemakers jumped out to a 16-13 lead. A service error by the Cheesemakers and a Warnock kill cut Monroe's lead to 16-15. Kneubuehl delivered a kill that tied the set at 16. After a long hit out of bounds, Warnock's kill gave the Silver Eagles a 19-17 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
The Cheesemakers had six service errors in the match.
"We had some serving errors at really bad times," Heidi Witt said.
The Cheesemakers will play five matches in the Monroe Invitational on Saturday.
"All of the matches will just help them with their communication and help them get more consistent in their coverages," Heidi Witt said.
However, the Silver Eagles stormed back from a 17-7 deficit, winning 18 of the next 25 points and stunning the Cheesemakers 25-22.
Monona Grove junior McKenna Warnock got hot in the second set and helped the Silver Eagles clip the Cheesemakers in three sets, 25-23, 25-22, 25-22.
"We told them in the huddle not to get comfortable," Monroe coach Heidi Witt said during a timeout in the Silver Eagles' 18-5 run in the second set. "They learned a hard lesson tonight. It's not over until the scoreboard says 25. It's OK to be a little mean on the court. We have to finish off games. We will get better at finishing games. Tonight proves that these girls can compete in this conference. Overall, we did a lot of great things."
Monroe (0-2, 0-1 Badger South) jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first set of their conference and home opener. After the Silver Eagles came back to tie it later in the set, Monroe sophomore Cassi Gersbach had a kill to give the Cheesemakers an 8-7 lead. It was a tight first set with the lead changing hands several times. The Silver Eagles battled back to take an 18-14 lead.
It didn't take long for the Cheesemakers to answer. Monroe senior Sydney Mathiason, who had nine kills and two blocks, came up with a block to tie the set at 20. Senior Alysha Witt moments later delivered an ace and Mathiason had a kill that gave the Cheesemakers a 23-22 lead. A service error by the Cheesemakers tied the match at 23, and the Silver Eagles pulled out the first set when the Cheesemakers had an errant hit out of bounds.
"It was very exciting," Mathiason said. "It was good to see we were right there with one of the good teams in the conference. We just have to keep playing and not get comfortable. We have to keep playing until we get to 25. I think we will have a super season."
The Cheesemakers got on a roll in the second set, building a 17-7 lead. The Silver Eagles rallied behind Warnock who had a match-high 18 kills. The 6-foot-1 Warnock and 6-1 Lydia Kneubuehl each had kills to slice the Cheesemakers' lead to 20-16. After the Cheesemakers were called for touching the net, Monona Grove senior Kearsten Kochan slammed a kill to tie the set at 22. Warnock powered a kill to give the Silver Eagles a 23-22 lead, and they didn't look back.
"Their really big hitter (Warnock) really started getting on," Witt said of the second-set comeback by the Silver Eagles. "Once she got on, we struggled with where we needed to be on our coverages."
Monroe freshman Zoee Pond had six digs and senior Meredith Hose posted two aces. Alysha Witt understands that with the addition of some new players the Cheesemakers are still developing and adjusting to new tendencies on the court.
"I thought we started out every set really good," said Alysha Witt, who had a team-high 16 assists. "As we went on we got a little too comfortable, and we lightened up at the end of the sets. We were not getting our passes up and our hits in. I think we just need to work together on knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses out there."
The third set was a see-saw battle just like the first set. The Cheesemakers jumped out to a 16-13 lead. A service error by the Cheesemakers and a Warnock kill cut Monroe's lead to 16-15. Kneubuehl delivered a kill that tied the set at 16. After a long hit out of bounds, Warnock's kill gave the Silver Eagles a 19-17 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
The Cheesemakers had six service errors in the match.
"We had some serving errors at really bad times," Heidi Witt said.
The Cheesemakers will play five matches in the Monroe Invitational on Saturday.
"All of the matches will just help them with their communication and help them get more consistent in their coverages," Heidi Witt said.
