2-4 week for Bulldog volleyball
Lauryn Johnson was MFL MarMac’s digs leader in five of six games last week, including 12 in the Sept. 12 loss to Central. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Makayla Morrissey (left) and Ella Corlett team up for a block attempt against the Warriors.
Hannah Bogdonovich eyes a kill in the Bulldogs' loss to Central last week.
Kaitlin Picha returns a serve in MFL MarMac's Sept. 14 conference opener.
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
The MFL MarMac volleyball team went 2-4 last week, as it opened the Upper Iowa Conference schedule and played several games in a tournament at Waukon.
The week kicked off Sept. 12, in a 3-0 loss to Central. The Warriors dominated the opening set 25-3, then took the next two 25-13.
MFL MarMac struggled with serve reception, allowing 16 Warrior aces. Central made nearly 92 percent of its serve attempts.
Lauryn Johnson was responsible for 12 of the Bulldogs’ 39 digs, followed by six from Makayla Morrissey and Kaitlin Picha with five.
The Warriors also gained the advantage at the net, earning 21 kills to the Bulldogs’ nine. Ella Corlett collected three kills and Hannah Bogdonovich and Devon Meyer each picked up two. Morrissey earned a team-leading seven assists.
MFL MarMac’s serve efficiency dropped below 68 percent, after missing 10 of 31 attempts. Morrissey was 6-7 on the night, and Mallory Lang and Autumn Shaw were both a perfect 3-3.
The Bulldogs had another tough match against South Winneshiek on Sept. 14, losing the opening two sets 25-7 and 25-6 before closing the gap to 25-18 in the third.
While the team upped its serve efficiency to 75.8 percent, South Winn came in at 91.5 and smashed 15 aces.
Corlett was 6-7 on her attempts and Morrissey 5-6. Picha and Lang hit all four of their serves.
Picha led the Bulldog defense with 12 digs, Lang collected eight and Lauryn Johnson six. Corlett earned the team’s lone block.
MFL MarMac continued to struggle at the net, picking up just four kills on 64 attempts. The Warriors, meanwhile, had 21 kills on 76 tries. Bogdonovich accounted for half the Bulldog kills, while Maddie Keehner and Lily Johnson had one apiece.
The Bulldogs got back on track in a Sept. 16 tournament at Waukon, going 2-2. One win came over Kee, whom MFL MarMac swept 21-10 and 21-9.
Here, the offense flipped the script, racking up 21 kills. Bogdonovich led the way with seven, then Corlett with six. Keehner totaled four. Of MFL MarMac’s 21 assists, Lang picked up 13.
While the defense recorded no blocks, it was busy in the dig column. That included a whopping 18 by Lauryn Johnson. Lang was the next closest with five.
The team’s serve efficiency inched up to 90.2 percent, led by a 13-14 effort from Lang, who smacked three aces. Lauryn Johnson made all seven of her serves, four of which were aces, while Avery Lamborn finished at 5-6 with several aces.
That success carried over into a 2-0 sweep of Postville. The Bulldogs edged the Pirates 21-18 and 21-19 on another strong performance at the net.
Bogdonovich and Keehner each snagged five kills, and a quartet of Bulldogs—Corlett, Meyer, Lamborn and Lily Johnson—had two apiece.
Lang again led in the assist column, with 13, followed by three from both Morrissey and Lauryn Johnson.
Defensively, Lauryn Johnson’s 15 digs accounted for over half the team total. Sister Lily earned three.
The Bulldogs’ serve efficiency ticked down to 76.9 percent, but included an 8-9 performance by Corlett, who recorded a team-high three aces. Bogdonovich collected a pair of aces on an 8-10 game, while Lang was 7-9 with one ace.
North Crawford snapped MFL MarMac’s winning streak with a 21-13 and 21-15 sweep in game three.
The team’s kill total lowered to 16 on 49 attempts, led by Keehner’s five. Corlett and Lamborn each had three kills. Lang carried the assist load with six.
Lauryn Johnson dug a team-high six balls on the defensive side, while Picha collected four. Corlett tallied a block.
From the service line, Bogdonovich hit nine of 10 attempts and had one of three Bulldog aces. Corlett was 8-9, also with an ace. The team completed 79.3 percent of serves.
MFL MarMac wrapped up the tournament with a 2-0 loss to Crestwood by scores of 21-15 and 21-7.
Serve efficiency again hurt the Bulldogs, as they made just over 69 percent compared to the Cadets’ 92.7. Crestwood had 14 aces.
Bogdonovich was MFL MarMac’s top server, at 7-8, and Corlett finished the game 4-5.
Lauryn Johnson again topped the dig column, this time with five. Shaw followed with three.
The Bulldog offense recorded seven kills, with Lamborn and Corlett tying at the top with two. Lang earned all four team assists.
MFL MarMac now sits at 3-8 overall and 0-2 in the conference. This week includes a home match-up with Postville Sept. 19, then at Clayton Ridge Sept. 21 and a tournament at Decorah Sept. 23.
