Bulldogs drop the Lions

(Above) Clear Lake’s Sara Faber finished the match against Algona with five kills and four digs.  Algona won the conference bout, 25-17, 25-13, and 25-21.  -Reporter photo by Chris Barragy

Perennial volleyball power Algona handed the Clear Lake Lions a conference loss last week.  The Bulldogs swept the Lions, 25-17, 25-13, 25-21 to drop the Lions to 3-4 overall and 0-1 in the North Central Conference.

“Overall I was pleased with most of the night. You can never be satisfied with a loss, but you have to take the positives and run with them,” said Coach Richie Ellis.  “The girls are gaining more and more confidence in their abilities.  When they get to that point, when they believe 100 percent that they can win, I feel things will start rolling for us.”

The Lions showed a balanced offensive attack against Algona, with all players recording five to six kills.

“Maranda Harrison was the most efficient, by not committing any attack errors,” noted the coach.  Harrison had four kills and three digs in the match. She was also 13/14 from the service line.

Defensively the team led by Chloe Mueller and Julia Merfeld, with 10 digs apiece.  Merfeld was also effective on serve, scoring on 12 of 13 attempts.  Mueller was 6/7 serving.

Macy Mixdorf was a perfect 9/9 on serve.  Seniors Jenna Wilkinson and Joslyn Gannon went 5/6 and 4/ respectively serving for the Lions.

“Sara Faber was our most consistent both on offense and defense. She is learning how to play the left side and will continue to improve as the season moves forward,” said the coach.  Faber finished the match with five kills and four digs.