Attitude wasn't enough

Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn's volleyball team had the right attitude entering their regional quarterfinal match against Hinton. Unfortunately for the Hawks, that was not enough to overcome the strengths of the No. 2-rated team in Class 2A.

Enjoying advantages in almost every statistical category, the Blackhawks swept the match by scores of 25-5, 25-10, 25-10, on Oct. 18 at Hinton.

The first two sets mirrored the scoring of the regular season match between the two teams. Hinton broke out to sizable leads in each and pulled away at the finish. The final set was close in the early stages. The Hawks were trailing by six when Hinton went on a 7-2 run to close out the match.

"The girls came out with a positive attitude against a very tough Hinton team," Hawk coach Cheryl Kroese said. "We were able to get some touches on the ball at the net defensively, and our passing was very good. As a team, we worked hard. I was proud of the ladies and their efforts."

Hinton had a 40-9 overall advantage in kills. Abby Douma and Eliza Tewes each finished with four. Frankie Mohni contributed eight set assists.

Mohni was 6-of-6 in serving, Tewes was 5-of-6, Moriah Otto was 4-of-5, Kinsey Schirmer was 3-of-3 and Lindsey Van Es was 3-of-4.

Leaders in digs were Abigail Otto with five, Douma with four, Van Es with three, and Addison Sheeler and Tewes with two.

H-M-S concludes the 2023 season with a record of 7-18. A recap of the season will be featured in a future issue of the Sentinel-News.