Eagles hold off Murray in regional opener

AFTON — On paper, it says East Union advanced to the second round of Class 1A Region 8 play with a 3-0 sweep of non-conference rival Murray Tuesday night.

What it doesn’t say is just how close Murray came to gaining a 2-1 lead after three sets.

In the end, all that matters is that the Eagles advance with a 25-23, 25-16, 25-23 victory over the Lady Mustangs. The Eagles, now 18-14, host Bluegrass Conference champion Lamoni (19-10) on Monday, Oct. 23 after the Demons swept Diagonal in first-round action Tuesday.

Murray bows out at 12-14, a record that could have been improved if the Lady Mustangs had shown Tuesday’s intensity on a more consistent basis, coach Jerry Shields said.

“Those were two very competitive games, the first and the third ones,” Shields said. “That’s probably the best we played all year long, hustle-wise and communication-wise. If we had played like that all year long, we wouldn’t have lost as many games as we lost.”

In retrospect, Shields said the first set was critical in his team falling in a 1-0 hole after sitting even with the Eagles at 22-22.

“I just kind of had the feeling late in set one, that whomever won that set would probably win the night,” Shields said.

Jayden Welcher served two points, including an ace, to get it to 24-22 in favor of East Union. It was part of a stellar night for her at the line — 15 of 16 with three aces.

Murray gained back one point, but senior leader Olivia Eckels ended it for the Eagles with a deep kill into the Murray court. For the night, Eckels had a season-high 17 kills.

“Eckels has turned it on this year,” East Union coach Gail Thatcher said. “She’s a leader on the court for us.”

The Eagles coach felt her team got a little complacent after the relatively easy 25-16 win in the second set.

Murray persistance

But, Murray quickly showed it wasn’t going to go down easily in playing on even terms all the way to 14-14.

East Union setter Megan Mitchell, who was accurate all night in getting the Eagles hitters opportunities for kills with 29 assists, served three straight points after a sideout for an 18-14 lead.

Murray responded with its own spurt. Zoie Lecy went on a four-point service run that included back-to-back kills by Bre Klein. Murray was on a roll, leading 20-18 until a service error interrupted the momentum.

“You know, most times kids think they served 15 times and only missed one so it must have been a great night,” Shields said. “But that one time can be at a crucial time. We had some of those tonight.”

After a 22-22 deadlock, East Union had the upper hand down the stretch to close it out. On one long volley, East Union junior Rakenzy Pryor blocked Klein’s kill attempt, and took a pass back to her for the kill to make it 23-22, drawing a roar from the home crowd.

Lauren Mitchell served the next point that ended on a kill by Eckels. Lauren Mitchell was 17 of 18 serving for the night with an ace.

Facing elimination, Murray ended a marathon point that went over a minute before Klein got a spike down for the point, closing it to 24-23.

Pryor ended the next volley with a hard shot the Lady Mustangs couldn’t return, ending it at 25-23.

Thatcher liked the way the Eagles responded after facing several deficits of two or three points throughout that set.

“I liked that the girls really stayed focused,” Thatcher said. “They started passing it up and getting the ball in our attackers’ hands and finding the holes on the floor. It took us awhile in that third game, but we got it going.”

Thatcher said some recent changes in the lineup have paid off for more efficient play. This includes the insertion of freshman Alex Riley into one rotation to help with serve receive and setting. Olivia Cheers has moved from an outside hitter position to middle hitter. Anna Collins has moved into more full-time duty as a hitter.

“Our goal is to not let people make runs on us, and I think we have improved on that,” Thatcher said.

Murray played its last match with four seniors, including a top hitter and server in Lecy, who was fifth in the Bluegrass Conference in kills. Other seniors are middle blocker MacKenna Skroh, back row player and setter Becca Decker and Pantera Stowers.

UP NEXT — If the Eagles are successful Monday against Lamoni, there’s a chance they would meet another Pride of Iowa Conference top contender, Southeast Warren, on Oct. 26 in Afton. Southeast Warren had a first-round bye and faces Central Decatur Monday after the Cardinals swept Mormon Trail Tuesday.

Statistics

Serving (aces) —EU: Jayden Welcher 15-16 (3), Lauren Mitchell 17-18 (1), Olivia Eckels 8-8, Olivia Cheers 6-7, Callie Gossman 7-8, Quinn Eslinger 3-4 (1). M: Bre Klein 12-12, Twila Barber 10-10, Zoie Lecy 13-14.

Attacks (kills) — EU: Eckels 34-39 (17), Rakenzy Pryor 24-25 (8), Cassidy Riley 8-9 (3), Cheers 5-10 (2), Anna Collins 8-11 (1), Alex Riley 8-9 (1), L. Mitchell 6-7 (1). M: Klein 22-27 (8), Lecy 23-33 (7), Kelli Romero 14-16 (4).

Blocks (solo-assists) — EU: Pryor 2-3, M. Mitchell 0-2, Eckels 0-1. M: Klein 1, MacKenna Skroh 1.

Setting (assists) — EU: M. Mitchell 29, L. Mitchell 1. M: Becca Decker 31-33 (4), Barber 29-30 (8).

Digs — EU: Gossman 16, Eckels 12, L.Mitchell 6, Welcher 5, M. Mitchell 5. M: Emma Decker 8, Hailey Chew 4.

Serve receive — EU: Gossman 30-32, Eckels 22-25, L. Mitchell 15-15, Welcher 19-20, C. Riley 4-4. M: Klein 16-17, Britta Callstrom 10-12, Chew 4-4.