Lady Scotties Play Two After A Week Off

The Glasgow Scottie volleyball team has had a unique season so far, one that has not been experienced before. Games have been canceled, moved around and even some tournaments became unattainable for the girls to participate in due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last-minute cancellations, which was the case when Poplar rescheduled their Sept. 17 match and Harlem canceled last minute for their Sept. 19 match, provided unexpected time and opportunity for the Lady Scotties to reflect upon the season so far, practice and learn from each other.

"We spent a majority of our time in practice working on serving and passing as those are the two most important parts of the game. We did a lot of serve receive drills and a lot of passing drills from me tossing as well," stated coach Somer Hoerster.

The practice, unexpected time off, and the anxiousness to play again helped the team secure the win for the match against the Wolf Point Wolves on Sept. 24. The Lady Scotties secured the win in three, 25-11, 25-9, 25-10. According to Hoerster, the biggest factors contributing to the win was managing the unforced errors on the Scotties' side of the net.

"We missed very few serves and our hitters kept the ball in play. It was one of the cleanest matches we have played so far and you can see that in the scores," said Hoerster.

Hoerster stated seniors Rachelle Glaser and Riley Noser stepped up with leading on the court with their energy and effort. "They are our two senior leaders on Varsity and they are really embracing that this is their last season and to make it count. They brought everyone else up around them which was nice to see. It was also great to see the girls have some fun and smile," explained Hoerster.

The Lady Scotties hoped to keep up that momentum for their home match on Sept. 26 against Plentywood, however the Wildcats didn't want to give up that easily, battling it out with the Scotties in five games. After a long-fought battle, the Wildcats would take home the win, 23-25, 25-7, 21-25, 25-21, 15-10.

"Plentywood is a very tough team and we knew we were going to have our hands full with them. We played them last year and also went to five with them, losing in the final game. They have been to State the last two years and have played some very strong teams which having that tournament play experience has done a lot for that group of girls," explained Hoerster. "We expected it to be a battle and honestly, overall I was happy with my team."

Glasgow achieved 35 kills, nine blocks, 12 aces, 30 digs and 22 assists compared to the Wildcats' 47 kills, 18 aces, 44 digs and 35 assists. Abrianna Nielsen led the team in kills with 17, while Glaser led the team in blocks with four and in assists with 18. Daley Aune led the team with five aces while Blaire Westby led the time in digs with 18.

"It's hard to lose a match, especially in five but I saw a lot of things that we improved on in just the past two weeks and we have a lot of room to grow. We don't have near the varsity experience in match play on our side of the net as they did and we look forward to seeing them again," said Hoerster.

Hoerster admits there is a lot to build upon after that match and is excited to see how the girls will do with a busy week full of home games.

"We are very excited to have a whole week at home to enjoy home matches in our gym and with our fans and for the girls to get to enjoy the Homecoming festivities. This season feels especially important to these kids and so this will be a great week of competition at home. We are also looking forward to seeing more of our district opponents and how we stack up with them," exclaimed Hoerster.

The Lady Scotties are scheduled to play Malta on Thursday, Oct. 1, with C squad action starting at 4:30 p.m. The Scotties will then face Fairview on Saturday, Oct. 3, for Homecoming, with C squad action starting at 1 p.m.