ELY— Hannah Reichensperger’s height and blocking ability kept Northeast Range in the hunt Tuesday night against Ely, but the Timberwolves’ depth ultimately proved the difference in a 3-1 season-opening victory.

The Wolves took it 25-20, 23-25, 25-19, 25-8.

“It was a little bit of a bumpy start,” said Ely Head Coach Andrea Thomas. “NER’s block shut us down at times, especially in the first two sets.”

Both teams showed signs of first-game jitters. Ely struggled early in the second set, falling behind 11-20 before regaining their composure. They battled back to lose the set 23-25, but their regained momentum carried them through the rest of the match. “McKenna Coughlin and McCartney Kaercher were very consistent servers for us tonight,” said Thomas.

Coughlin served up ten aces in the match, along with ten kills, while Kaercher tallied 25 set assists and five aces. Brielle Kallberg notched 12 digs, six blocks, and five kills, while Erika Mattson posted seven kills and five aces. Jenna Merhar added five kills, five aces, and three blocks.

Reichensperger blocked eight shots for the Nighthawks and posted 16 kills, while Jenna Smith was solid on defense with 17 digs. Lara Poderzay added 19 assists and Maude Lenz added nine digs.

“Overall, it feels good to get the win, but we definitely have some areas to focus on in practice before our matches next week,” said Thomas.

Despite the loss, Nighthawks Head Coach Jodi Reichensperger said her team felt good about how they played. “We knew going in where Ely stands. I anticipate they will be in the top three in our section,” said Reichensperger. Having lost four starting seniors from last year, Reichensperger acknowledged there’s some rebuilding to be done. “There’s nowhere to go but up for this team. Right now, they show a lot of promise.”