By Jared Schmeltzer
Reporter
On Tuesday night the Merrill volleyball team hosted the Rhinelander Hodags in the first round of the division two playoffs. Merrill was able to earn themselves a one seed for their regional and they showed why they are the one seed as they plowed past the Hodags in three straight sets.
“We were still slow getting our offense going,” comments Merrill head coach Kris Krug. “The pace of the game wasn’t as fast as we were used to. I feel like we were caught off guard with some well placed free balls.”
Merrill took the first set convincingly and was able to get some of their bench players in the game. “It was a good match to get everybody some playoff experience,” said coach Krug. “I thought the girls did well coming off the bench, not having played many varsity matches.”
The Jays would go on to take the next two sets as well as they won 3-0. Coach Krug was happy with how her team played, but is trying to stay focused for the next game. “All in all we played well. We have a big week ahead of us, but we are going to take it one match at a time.”
Merrill will be back on the court tomorrow as they host Northland Pines in the second round of regionals, starting at 7 p.m.