BY TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
On Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023, the Merrill Girls Varsity Volleyball Team traveled to Marshfield for a match.
“This was our first Conference game on the road,” Head Varsity Volleyball Coach Kasie Holt said. “Marshfield is sitting at the top of our Conference right now. Marshfield has a solid team, and we knew going into it that it was going to be a tough match.”
“Although the scores don’t reflect a win, it was still a successful night in my eyes,” she said. “I thought for the most part we played calm and confident and we had the lead several times.”
“Marshfield has a very strong offense, but so do we,” Holt said. “We finished the night with Chloe McRae having 8 kills, McKenna Meyer with 6, and Lex Emmer with 7. Emma Hoff also served up 4 aces, which gave us a solid lead in the third set. The next time we see Marshfield will be our last home game of the regular season. I feel that we learned a lot from that match and that when play them for a second time at home, with our amazing fans surrounding us, we will come out with a win.”
Box Score
Merrill 0 @ Marshfield 3
20-25, 19-25, 16-25
Saturday, Sept. 9, Merrill played host to the Girls Varsity Invitational meet, with teams from Athens, Chippewa Falls, Edgar, Medford, Stanley-Boyd, Tomahawk, and Wittenberg-Birnamwood all coming to play.
“We struggled to gain momentum, ending the day with a 2-3 record,” Holt said.
“I think we were all disappointed with how the day went, but we were ready to put the work in this week at practice so that we could give a strong showing against Wausau East.”
On Thursday, Sept. 14, the Merrill Varsity Volleyball Team played host to the girls from Wausau East. The Lady Jays had a great evening of play, ending the night with a score of 3-1 and an exciting win.
“We switched a few things in our lineup, and that showed the first set when we lost 19-25,” Holt said. “We weren’t communicating at all and were scrambling for every ball.”
“However, the girls calmed down and ended up completely dominating the rest of the match. We were winning by a lot at times, but it always felt close because our energy was so high,” she said. “We were having fun and celebrating every point.”
“I’m proud that we were able to keep our play at that high level,” Holt said. “Our defense really picked up after the first set, with Avery Hoff having 12 digs, Jalie Severt with 10, and Maddy Ott with 15. Because our defense was on, our setters were able to utilize our middles, Lex Emmer and Chloe McRae, both finishing the night with 12 and 13 kills respectively.”
Box Score
Wausau East 1 @ Merrill 3
19-25, 25-12, 25-11, 25-12