INT’L FALLS- The North Woods volleyball team shook off some mid-match doldrums on Tuesday to claim their second road win of the new season at International Falls.
The dominance the Grizzlies displayed while chalking up their first win at Mt. Iron-Buhl on Monday carried over into their first two sets against the Broncos. The serves were popping, the spikes sizzling, and the bumps dropping for North Woods as they raced to set wins of 25-11 and 25-14, leaving I-Falls dazed and confused.
But volleyball is known as a game of streaks, and the Grizzlies four-game steak of dominance spanning two matches was about to come to a stumbling halt. The Broncos upped their hitting game in the third set, and with improved play at the net kept a slim advantage throughout. A block at the net by Grizzlies’ sophomore Isabel Pascuzzi got North Woods to within one at 20-19, but the Broncos countered with their own block to maintain the lead. Another North Woods sophomore, Lauren Burnett, put the Grizzlies in a position to tie the set after a big cross court kill made the score 22-21, but the Broncos again held on and closed out the win 25-22.
Midway through the fourth set I-Falls had the Grizzlies on their heels, taking an eight-point lead at 12-4. North Woods was finding it difficult to score against a rejuvenated Broncos front line, and balls were going in the net or sailing long and wide. North Woods was trailing 18-11 when Head Coach Kandi Olson called time out, and when they came back on the court senior Addy Hartway got a big block at the net. With Burnett serving and the Grizzlies getting timely kills from Pascuzzi and Hartway they closed the gap to 18-16. I-Falls regrouped and had set point at 24-19, but senior River Cheney came through with a soft shot over the Bronco blockers. With Pascuzzi serving up an ace and I-Falls committing consecutive errors, the Grizzlies knotted the score at 24. But Pascuzzi’s next serve sailed long and the Broncos scored on a block to take the set 26-24 and even the match at two sets each.
The fifth set was a pure battle of wills, with neither team willing to give in. North Woods led by as many as four early, but I-Falls tied the score at 10-10 and then went up by two. Hartway brought the Grizzlies even at 12-12 with a block, and with an ace serve from senior Tori Olson North Woods reclaimed the lead. But moments later it was the Broncos only one point away from victory at 15-14. Hartway kept the Grizzlies alive with a soft dink over the front line, and senior setter Talise Goodsky placed the ball perfectly for a Pascuzzi kill. It was Goodsky to Pascuzzi again for a match-winning mid-court punch shot at 17-15.
Mt. Iron-Buhl
The MIB Rangers were primed to come out hot in front of a good home crowd for Monday’s season opener, and the Grizzlies struggled to find their rhythm early, falling behind 11-7. The MIB lead was 19-12 when the Grizzlies finally began to emerge from hibernation. They closed the gap by three with Goodsky serving, and after giving up a point Addy Hartway nailed a kill and took over at serve, immediately firing an ace. A pair of Pascuzzi slams and an MIB error later, the set was tied 20-20. North Woods took the lead for good at 22-21, and completed the 25-23 comeback when MIB was called for a net violation.
Now fully awakened, the Grizzlies came out roaring in the second set, going up 14-4 and building the lead to 13 at 18-5 as they coasted to an easy 25-13 win.
The third set was eerily similar, as North Woods once again found themselves up 18-5 and breezed to a 25-14 win to clinch the match.
Olson talked about the match and her team after Monday’s win.
“Of course, you never want to start like that, but it was nice to see that they were able to turn the whole thing around and get that win at the end of game one, especially with the large deficit,” she said.
She also gave an assist to two former Grizzlies, last year’s seniors Hannah Kinsey and Skyler Yernatich.
“I think they were great examples to these girls and showed them what to do and what they can be as a team,” Olson said. “And we look out there today, and we see things that that those two girls shared on the teams of the past. But now these girls are going to take it to another level. The attitude is, we’re gonna go out there, we’re gonna have fun, and we’re gonna do our best every night. And I love that about them.”
The prospects look good for the season. This is a senior-rich Grizzlies squad, boasting five experienced players including Madison Dantes, Olson, Hartway, Goodsky, and Cheney.
“That’s really going to benefit us in the long run. They have a lot of game time and they just have that really quick, smart thinking out there, which is what we need,” Olson said.
And perhaps none have embraced their leadership role on the team more than Olson at the libero position, the traditional floor general spot that keeps things moving.
“This was actually the first court where she took over as libero as an eighth grader,” Coach Olson said. “She’s really taken that role and developed as hard as she can for the team. I think she’s putting her best foot forward every night and I love the attitude that she brings.”
Going into the season, the Grizzlies knew they had a couple of big hitters in Burnett and Hartway, based on last year’s performance, and Dantes can get up and lay down a kill when needed as well. But Monday’s breakout performer was surely Pascuzzi, who rode the bench most of last year as a freshman.
“She is not a surprise at all,” said Olson of Pascuzzi. “We knew this was coming and we were just waiting for her time. And now it’s her time to shine. We knew from day one we were going to have some great hitting, and tonight shows these kids know what they’re doing when they’re up over the net. It’s going to get stronger and stronger across the season. And we’ve got the awesome hands of Talise putting the ball in their hands every time.”
The Grizzlies take the court again next Tuesday, Sept. 5 when they host Bigfork in their home opener.