The Nemaha Central Middle School volleyball girls were filled with excitement for their first game of the season. The game was hosted by the St. Marys Bears on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Consisting of 16 seventh and 10 eighth graders, the Thunder team is coached by Nikki Honeyman, Carly Hill, and Lisa Holthaus.
The eighth grade B-team girls stepped on the court with a mix of emotions. They were excited yet nervous for their first game of the season. The first set went really well. They won 25-19 and had amazing rallies. Throughout the night, Evelyn Ba Coc, Alyvia Sudbeck, Zoey Streeter, and Emma Tangeman tallied up kills. In the second set, the Thunder fought hard but lost 23-25. The two teams split the first two matches, causing a nerve-racking third match. Unfortunately, the Thunder lost the third set as well with an ending score of 11-15. The B-team played very well but lost the match.
The next game was the eighth grade A-team. Coming into this game, the girls knew they needed to work hard and do their best. In the first set, the Thunder tried hard and played well, but lost 23-25. Alyssa Griffith and Anna Jost had several kills in the first set . The second set resulted in an exciting win by the Thunder, 25-23. In the third set, the team did exceptionally well and came away with a set win with a score of 17-15.
“The team started off pretty rocky but at the end, we showed up and won it all on A-team,” said Jayla Nolte, an NC eighth grade volleyball player. The NC volleyball team was thrilled to get their first win of the season.
The next game was the seventh grade A-team. The first set was a breeze for the Thunder, winning 25-14. The team had some amazing passes, sets, and hits. The second set started, and they played just as well as before. The NC volleyball girls won again, 25-20. Since our school’s athletic league changed, it now requires them to play three sets, even though they won in two. They won the third and final set, 15-13. The Thunder played amazing in their first game.
Finally, the seventh grade B-team was up to play. The Thunder lost the first nerve-racking set 28-30 but kept it close and played well. The Thunder won the second set, 25-17. They had to play a third set since each team won a set, and they lost the third set 13-15.
“We played really good, but had some struggles and got confused,” said Emmie Monier, an NC seventh grade volleyball player.
The Thunder volleyball team had a great first outing of the season. Even though only the A-teams won, all the teams look forward to improving their level of play.
Article by: Piper Hiltgen, Evelyn Ba Coc, and Luke Ganstrom