Lady Broncos take third in league, prep for Nov. 2 tournament start

Sweeping St. George’s Tuesday night in the final regular season game of the year, the Lady Broncos secured a third place finish in the Northeast 2B volleyball standings. They also guaranteed themselves a spot in the NE 2B Volleyball Tournament.

Only the top four teams in the league are guaranteed a trip to the tournament. As a result of the strong finish, Lady Broncos will not have to win-to-get-in through the early rounds of the tournament, which start on Thursday, Oct. 31. Instead they can practice and prepare for a Saturday, Nov. 2, debut in the bracket, likely against a team they have already defeated this year, such as Reardan or Springdale.

“I think it is pretty good. It is the best finish that we have had since I’ve been coaching,” said head coach Cari Galbreath. “I wish we could have ended in second and have beaten Davenport. But we still have a lot to look forward to.”

Tuesday against St. George’s, the Lady Broncos made fast work, winning 25-7, 25-11 and 25-10.

For the match, Jenna Bennett had 11 aces, four kills, 16 assists and four digs. Jana Mattox had one dig. Maya Wahl had three aces, three kills and one dig. Sydney Nelson added four assists. Soraida Chavez finished with one kill, one assist and three digs. Kim Gimmaka had one ace and three kills. Dalyn Killian had one ace, 16 kills, one block, two assists and two digs. Felicia Zeimer had one dig. Elizabeth Schofstoll had three kills. Tessa Jantz had one kill.

The Lady Broncos lost to Davenport on Saturday in three games, falling 14-25, 15-25 and 19-25.

“We just started out in such a slump, I think it was 7-0 before we were able to score,” Galbreath said. “Just starting off so slow, I don’t think the girls were ever able to recover.”

Mattox recorded one dig in the match. Wahl finished with two kills and two assists. Nelson had six assists and three digs. Chavez had four digs. Gimmaka had one kill. Bennett had seven kills, one block, nine assists and one dig. Killian finished with 10 kills and four assists. Schofstoll had one ace and one kill. Mallory Kessler finished with two aces, five kills and three digs.

One advantage of the long break until the start of tournament play is an opportunity for Kessler to heal. She sat out of Tuesday’s match with a foot injury. Galbreath said the team would know Kessler’s status following an MRI on Wednesday.

The Lady Broncos will be without Wahl and Nelson during the first tournament match. Galbreath said her reserve players, Jantz, Gimmaka, Zeimer and Sara Aldrich will see plenty of action as a result.