The Lyons varsity volleyball team traveled to Marion on Saturday, September 16, to compete
in the 17th Annual Marion Spikefest.
The day started with a three-set victory over the Douglass Bulldogs. Although struggling at times to find some offense, Sierra Belote and Mya Fiero found enough holes, and the strong play from back row players Keirah Davis and Kennedy Grizzle as well as Belote’s and senior Addison Silva’s strong serving led to a 16-25, 25-14, 25-21 victory. During the second set, Sierra Belote scored an amazing 15 points in a row to take the fight out of the Bulldogs.
The Lions came out in a completely new formation to begin the third match against the Lost Springs-Centre Cougars. The Cougars had previously lost to both Douglass and Halstead. A victory would mean the Lions would advance to the championship semifinals. It took a little while for Lyons to find their groove with the new assignments, but once they did, they moved in unison, creating a rhythm and flow that they had not shown this year. Coach Rausch commented on his team's performance, "When a team is in sync, it is almost like a dance. Each player moves in unison to the whole team and reacts as one both offensively and defensively. I loved the way they moved in that match. I felt we took a giant step forward. Outside hitter Belote and Fiero, middles Mitzy Gomez and Tiffany Cereceres, setters Addison Silva and Kathleen Elliott as well as backrow defenders Alexa Guzman, Davis, and Grizzle created good chemistry.” Lyons won the match in straight sets 25-18, 25-8.
Moving into the semifinals against the winner of the “A” pool, the Marion Warriors, coach Rausch would face something he never experienced in his career, he would be coaching against his daughter, Keri Collett, the head coach of the Warriors. The mood was light but both teams knew a berth to the finals was in play. Lyons came out strong and determined, probably playing their best ball to date. There were many strong rallies and very few unforced errors from the Lions. The elevated play resulted in Lyons winning the opening set 26-24. Marion had a wake-up call and defending their home tournament refocused the Warriors. Again, there were many tough rallies but in the end, the Warriors knotted up the victory, 18-25. In the final set Lions could not put together enough offense to match Marion’s strength, Lyons losing the set and match 18-25.
The match for 3rd place could have been hard because of the earlier letdown, but it turned out just the opposite. The Lions knew they had found a group that would fight for each other and showed no fear against the Wichita Central Christian Lions. Although they bent, they never broke and the Lyons Lions prevailed in two sets to win third place 25-22, 25-18 and go 3-2 for the day!
Lions will have their first home meet on September 19 taking on the state-ranked Hesston Swathers and the Haven Wildcats. The Lions record stands at 6-10.