“They called us up and wanted to play us.”
Bellmont volleyball head coach Craig Krull turned an unexpected call into exactly the kind of match he’s always seeking Saturday, with his team preparing for a second year in the tough and rugged 4A class of Indiana high school volleyball by beating Willoughby South of Ohio 3-1 at home (21-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-16).
“The varsity match was like playing ourselves,” said Krull after the win against a new opponent. “They had a senior who was very similar to our MaryKate. She’s headed to Rider University. We just played through some early errors and found a way to settle in and make plays that allowed us to win.”
The win was also important for the Braves as they dealt this week with the harsh news that senior Alyssa Gumbel, who finished her junior year last October with 493 career kills, will not have a chance to reach 500 due to an injury that will rob the PFW commit of her senior season.
After dropping the first set to South, the Braves took care of business the rest of the afternoon with victories in the next three. MaryKate Scheumann led the Braves with 21 kills on 50 attempts.
Senior Lilly Selking has taken over full-time setting duties for the team. Coach Krull rotated last year between three underclassmen (Liz Bobay had 431 assists last year, Selking had 291 and Gracie Riggs had 243), but Bobay is not on the team this year and Riggs did not appear in Saturday’s varsity contest.
Taylor Sutter was the second option for the Braves in their opener with 41 kill attempts. The junior converted on eight of them to finish second on the team.
Also seeing significant playing time for the varsity for the first time were Averie Coats and Katie Reinhart.
Scheumann led the team in digs (28) and aces (2).
The Braves will begin their competition against in-state teams Tuesday against Bishop Dwenger. That match can be heard on 92.7 FM.
The junior varsity team won 25-17, 19-25, 15-9, while the freshman team fell to their Ohio opponents 13-25, 25-15, 16-14 in an exciting match held in the main gym.
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