Central volleyball team shows resilience, teamwork in first week on the court
By Coach Kelly Erickson | Times-Register
The Central volleyball team had an action-packed week on the court, showing resilience and teamwork against tough competition.
The week began Tuesday on the road, where the team faced a strong Lisbon squad. Despite a hard-fought effort, the girls fell in two sets, 14-21 and 14-21.
Next up was Alburnett. After dropping the first set, the team showed tremendous grit and determination, battling back to win the next two and securing their first victory.
The night continued against Williamsburg, where the team came up short in two sets.
However, the players bounced back strong in their final contest, defeating Clayton Ridge with convincing scores of 21-14 and 21-8.
Central finished the night with a 2-2 record. I was pleased with how we worked together as a team throughout the night.
On Thursday, the team traveled to Oelwein to take on another strong opponent. The girls came out battling in the first set, keeping it close before falling 21-25. Despite the tough start, Oelwein’s strong offense proved difficult to slow down as the match continued, with the team dropping the next two sets 12-25 and 16-25. Even though the score didn’t go our way, it was encouraging to see the team start the night playing tough.
On Saturday, the team traveled to Edgewood for a tournament. The girls opened pool play strong with a win over Marquette Catholic, 21-13 and 21-8. Next, they battled EDCO in a close match but came up just short, 19-21 and 14-21. In their third matchup, the team dropped the first set to MFL Mar-Mac 19-21, but responded with energy and confidence, winning the next two sets 21-19 and 15-6 to claim the victory. The team wrapped up pool play against a strong Wapsie Valley squad, falling in two sets 7-21 and 11-21.
In tournament play, the girls started strong, defeating East Buchanan in straight sets with scores of 25-19 and 25-10. That win advanced them to the Silver Bracket championship, where they pushed their opponent to three sets before narrowly falling in a nail-biter, 23-25, 25-18, and 15-17.
The team finished the tournament 3-3 on the day. Even though we were tired from a full day of volleyball, we continued to play strong throughout the whole day. I was very proud of how we played Saturday because we had a lot of underclassmen stepping up alongside our upperclassmen. It is great to see them working so well together this early in the season.
Several players stood out during the week’s matches. In the Lisbon game, senior Alivia Wiley led the way with 3 kills, 6 digs, and steady leadership in serve receive. Katie Royer contributed across the board with 3 kills, 14 assists, 4 digs, and a perfect 7/7 from the service line. Freshman Zoey Armstrong provided a spark off the bench, going 3/3 in serving. Ella Frieden and Oakley Armstrong each added 2 kills, while Brylee Erickson and Oakley both tallied 4 digs to help anchor the defense.
Against Alburnett, the team served an impressive 90% overall, finishing with 7 aces. Brylee Erickson was a standout at the line, going a perfect 13/13 with 4 aces. Katie Royer followed closely, serving 9/10 with 2 aces. Royer also paced the offense with 4 kills and 6 assists, while Layla Embretson added 3 kills. Brylee Erickson chipped in 4 assists as well. On the defensive side, Oakley Armstrong anchored the back row with 14 digs, and Royer added 11 digs to round out a strong all-around performance.
In the match against Williamsburg, sophomore middle Ella Frieden led the offense with 3 kills and added 2 solo blocks at the net. Senior Alivia Wiley followed with 2 kills. Defensively, Katie Royer paced the team with 6 digs, while Brylee Erickson added 4. Off the bench, freshman Zoey Armstrong provided a spark from the service line, going a perfect 6/6, while Royer chipped in at the line as well, serving 4/5 with 1 ace.
Against Clayton Ridge, senior Alivia Wiley was perfect from the service line, going 10/10. On defense, Brylee Erickson led the team with 3 digs, while on offense, sophomore Ella Frieden powered the attack with 7 kills, followed by Katie Royer with 5 kills.
Against Oelwein, the team showed strong individual performances. Ella Frieden led the way at the service line, going an impressive 16/17, while also adding 2 solo blocks and 1 block assist. Alivia Wiley powered the offense with a team-high 6 kills and chipped in 1 solo block. Oakley Armstrong followed with 4 kills, and both Katie Royer and Ella Frieden contributed 3 kills each.
Overall, the team had solid moments both offensively and defensively. Moving forward, the key focus will be on improving blocking technique and cutting down on blocking errors to tighten up play at the net.
Against Marquette Catholic, the team put together one of their best serving performances of the season, finishing at an impressive 95% from the line (39/41). Katie Royer and Alivia Wiley were perfect at 8/8, while Brylee Erickson and Ella Frieden each went 6/6.
At the net, several players stepped up offensively. Royer, Wiley, and Frieden each tallied 5 kills, with Frieden also adding a solo block. Setting duties were shared, as Royer handed out 5 assists and Erickson dished 7 assists.
Defensively, Wiley and Erickson anchored the back row with 6 digs each, followed by Royer with 5 digs.
This balanced effort across serving, attacking, setting, and defense showed the team’s depth and ability to contribute in multiple areas.
Against EDCO, the team had another outstanding serving performance, hitting 97% and only missing a single serve. Freshman Carley Bergan came off the bench to serve 7/7, while Zoey Armstrong served 6/6, and senior Alivia Wiley also went 6/6.
On offense, Wiley led with 4 kills, followed by Katie Royer and Ella Frieden with 3 kills each. Frieden also added 1 solo block and 1 block assist. Setting contributions came from Brylee Erickson with 6 assists and Royer with 5 assists.
Defensively, Katie Royer led with 9 digs, followed by Erickson with 8 digs and Wiley with 7 digs, showcasing the team’s consistency and depth in the back row.
Against Wapsie, the team came just shy of their 90% serving goal, finishing at 89%, only missing 2 serves. Serving opportunities were limited, as the team wasn’t able to capitalize on every rotation.
Offensively, Ella Frieden led with 3 kills, followed by Layla Embretson with 2 kills. Setting duties were shared by Katie Royer and Brylee Erickson, each recording 4 assists. On defense, Alivia Wiley and Erickson each contributed 4 digs, helping to anchor the back row.
Against MFL MarMac, serving wasn’t as strong, with the team missing 8 serves. However, Ella Frieden served 13/15 with 2 aces, while coming off the bench, Zoey Armstrong went 10/12 with 1 ace, and Alivia Wiley was perfect at 9/9.
On offense, Wiley led the team with 7 kills and added 1 solo block, while Ella Frieden contributed 3 kills. Katie Royer and Brylee Erickson each added 5 kills, showing a balanced attack. Defensively, Royer led with 15 digs, followed by Erickson with 10 digs, and Zoey Armstrong contributed 7 digs off the bench.
Despite a few serving struggles, the team demonstrated strong offense and consistent defensive effort.
Against Buchanan, the team’s serving was a standout, with Carlie Bergan coming off the bench to serve 10/11 with 1 ace, and Zoey Armstrong going 9/10 with 1 ace. Overall, serve reception improved significantly for the team.
On defense, Brylee Erickson led with 12 digs, followed by Katie Royer with 7 digs and sophomore Tenley Bormann contributing 6 digs. Offensively, Alivia Wiley led the team with 7 kills, with Katie Royer adding 5 kills, showing a balanced and productive attack.
Finishing the day against a very competitive North Cedar team, the team had a strong serving performance across multiple players. Alivia Wiley served 14/15 with 3 aces, Katie Royer went 11/11 with 2 aces, Brylee Erickson went 8/10 with 3 aces, and Ella Frieden served 8/9 with 3 aces, showing depth and consistency from the service line.
Offensively, Katie Royer, Alivia Wiley, and Ella Frieden each contributed 9 kills, followed by Layla Embretson with 4 kills. On defense, Katie Royer led with 13 digs, while Alivia Wiley and Brylee Erickson each had 9 digs, anchoring the back row and keeping the team competitive throughout the match.
This week, the team will face North Cedar again on Tuesday, along with Clayton Ridge, and then travel to Midland for a tournament on Saturday.
With an injury in the lineup, we’ve had to rely on several younger players, and they’ve stepped up admirably, working hard and contributing meaningfully. Overall, the team is cohesive, resilient, and continuing to improve each day, showing great promise as we move through the beginning of the season.
With continued effort and teamwork, the squad is building momentum and looking forward to more success as the season progresses.
