Volleyball: Panthers take fourth at invitational

Oconto Falls posts 2-3 record
By: 
Morgan Rode
Sports Editor

SHAWANO — The Oconto Falls High School volleyball team earned a 2-3 record to take fourth place at the 45th Shawano Invitational on Saturday.

The busy day for the Panthers started with a clash against Kewaunee, which Oconto Falls won in straight sets, 25-23, 25-10.

Senior Natalie Brauer led the charge for the Panthers, tallying 11 attack kills. Sophomore Emmie Magnin finished with five attack kills.

Senior Samantha Coron and junior Abbi Remic led a strong serving effort for Oconto Falls, posting four and three aces, respectively. Remic also led the team with six digs, while Coron had a team-high 10 assists.

“I think we did a great job with adjusting to the new lineup,” said Coron. “We had multiple people step up and show the team what they can do in spots they aren’t super familiar with. Overall, I think we kept a pretty positive attitude the whole day and continued to try and play our best.”

In their next match, the Panthers suffered a tight 25-21, 25-22 loss to Wausau West.

Junior Jayden Arndt finished with a team-leading seven attack kills, while Brauer had six.

Coron finished with two aces and seven digs, while Magnin and Remic had six digs each. Coron and sophomore Hailey Peitersen totaled eight and seven assists, respectively.

Oconto Falls then wrapped up pool play with a 25-20, 25-22 victory over Brillion behind a balanced attack game.

Brauer led the way with seven kills, while junior Amelia Rice and senior Kari Albrecht each had six and Arndt posted five.

Junior McKayla Goebel recorded six digs, while Remic had five. Peitersen served three aces and Magnin had two. Coron again led the team in assists with 17, while Peitersen had eight.

“I think some positive things we did as a team (Saturday) was coming together as a group,” said Arndt. “We didn’t get down on each other and we kept picking each other up which really helps us communicate better as a team.”

The win over Brillion turned out to be the final match of the day for Arndt, who was unable to continue due to an illness. Despite the Panthers dropping their final two matches after a break, Oconto Falls coach Rochell Otto was pleased with how the team dealt with losing a key player.

“Even though Jayden was missed, the other girls stepped up in their new roles without a thought and did a nice job,” said Otto.

Oconto Falls’ fourth match of the day came against a talented Oconto squad. Oconto won by scores of 25-17, 25-15.

Brauer tallied seven of the team’s 10 attack kills in the setback, while Coron and Peitersen had six and four assists, respectively.

The loss sent the Panthers into the third-place match with Shawano, which went on for a 25-19, 25-23 win.

“We need to learn how to dig deep and push harder to finish on top of the close games,” said Otto.

Brauer finished with eight attack kills against Shawano, while Magnin had four. Sophomore Karlie Kowalczyk led the team with four digs.

Coron and Peitersen finished off a strong day of passing with 11 and five assists, respectively.

Despite the tough ending to what started as a promising day, the Panthers took plenty away from the invitational.

“Playing several matches a day definitely makes the whole team more comfortable and builds trust playing together as we move on (the rest of the season),” said Coron. “Also, we are able to better recognize our strengths and weaknesses after playing different levels of teams.”

The Panthers host Luxemburg Casco on Tuesday in their next match. Oconto Falls will play in another invitational on Saturday in Pulaski.

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