Clear Lake girls battle tested; getting ready for post-season

The Clear Lake girls volleyball team battled conference and non-conference foes last week.  The girls are tuning their skills heading into the final stretch of the season.  The Lions played their final match of the regular season Tuesday, Oct. 20, at Hampton.  Class 3A, Region 4 post-season play begins Monday, Oct. 26, at Algona.

CL 3, Webster City 0

The Lions traveled to Webster City Tuesday, Oct. 12.  The host Lynx handled the Lions, 25-17, 25-19, 25-20.

“Our game at Webster City was a good opportunity for our girls to take a step forward and begin to correct a number of mental mistakes that had plagued us in the past. We hung with WCHS in each match, but serve receive errors hurt us down the stretch,” said Coach Keith Sears.

Marne Euken had four kills to lead the Lions.  Kirsten Baalson was credited with eight assists.  Chloe Mueller had 27 digs and Emily Snelling recorded two blocks.

As a team, the Lions went 52/56 from the service line.  Jessica Faber led the way, putting in 10 of 10 serves.  Baalson scored on 10 of 11 try and Snelling was 11/12 serving.

C-G-D 3, CL 0

Serve receive and hitting errors doomed the Lions against Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Thursday, Oct. 15.  The Cowgirls swept the match by scores of 25-10, 25-10, 25-16.

“Our defense was great throughout the night and we were getting great touches on our blocks, but mental errors and breakdowns in communication came back to bite us,” said Coach Sears.

Marne Euken again led the Lions at the net, putting away five kills.  She also recorded a block.  Emily Snelling made seven assists and Chloe Mueller dug out 18 shots fired by the Cowgirls.   Sara Buehler paced the Lions serving, going 10 for 10.  Jessica Faber and Jenna Wilkinson were also perfect, going 3/2 and 2/2 respectively.  Snelling was 8/10 serving with the teams’ only ace.

Algona Tournament

Some of the best teams in the state participated in the Algona Tournament Saturday.  The Lions were winless in six matches.

“We were fortunate enough to play some of the best teams in the state over the weekend to give us a gauge of our progress.  We made a lot of great strides forward, and mental mistakes that plagued us in the past began to diminish throughout the day,” said Coach Sears.  “It was also great to have a large and loud crowd of supporters throughout the whole day to help keep us motivated.”

The Lions dropped 0-2 decisions to: Lake Mills, rated number eight in Class 2A, 21-11, 21-5; Algona, ranked 12th in 3A, 21-5, 21-13; Forest City, rated 11th in 3A, 21-6, 21-6; Spencer, 21-8, 21-18; Carroll, 21-7, 21-16; and Sheldon, 21-13, 21-13.

Statistical leaders for the day included Marne Euken and Jessica Faber with 10 and seven kills respectively.  Emily Snelling had 28 assists and nine blocks.  Chloe Mueller and Snelling helped the team defensively with 35 and 20 digs respectively.  Jenna Wilkinson was 20/21 at the service line with two aces.