GHV girls fall to North Iowa in home opener

(Above) GHV’s Mackenzie Van Gerpen records a dig for the Cardinals, while Bretta Carolus (back) and Carlie Knutson look on.  -Reporter photo by Chris Barragy

The Garner-Hayfield-Ventura volleyball teamed opened the 2016 season with a loss at home to North Iowa on Aug. 25.

It looked promising in the first set, with the Cardinals defeating the Bison, 25-16.  From there, it was all North Iowa, as they won the next three sets, 25-19, 25-13 and 26-24.

“We can learn from this match, in that winning one set doesn’t mean you will get a win overall,”  said Coach Kelsey Steffens.

Makenzie Van Gerpen and Hannah Lau led the team at the net, with 13 and 11 kills respectively.  Carlie Knutson also had a good night, with nine kills.

Frayne and Lau each had a block.

Lydia Seelhammer led the team in assists with 16, while Frayne contributed 14.

Leading the defense was Lau, with 11 digs.  Van Gerpen and Knutson had nine and eight respectively and Jackie Van Oort and Seelhammer each had seven digs.

Knutson and Lau led the team at the service line.  Knutson scored 12 points and Lau scored 10.

“We have been practicing strong serves, but we were unable to transfer that component into the game,”  said Steffens.  “We know what areas we need to focus on and will make the needed adjustments during practice this week.”

GHV hosts West Hancock on Thursday, Sept. 1, with the JV beginning at 6 p.m., followed by the varsity at 7:30 p.m.  Due to construction at the GHV High School, the game will be played in the Ventura gym.