Panthers struggle in home opener
· Yahoo Sports
Sep. 8—It's not the kind of night they wanted.
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Creston hosted a triangular Thursday against Fremont-Mills and Winterset, ending the night with losses to both.
The first set of the night against Fremont-Mills started slow for the Panthers, but they kept it close. After going down 9-8, the Panthers scored five confident points in a row to take the lead. From there, the Panthers stayed ahead until they eventually won the game 25-21.
It would be the only game Creston would win all night as the Knights charged ahead to win the second game 25-17. After keeping it close and tying the game 11-11, the Panthers could not keep the same energy as Fremont-Mills stayed ahead.
The Knights then cut the third game short with a dominant 15-7.
"They started tipping, and we could not make adjustments," head coach Naomi Sharp said. "We went to a third set and could never get anything going. Way too many unforced errors in set two and three. We could not get in a rhythm and were not making the best decisions."
An hour later, and after Winterset won 2-0 against Fremont-Mills, the Panthers were back on the court. Winterset, since the start of the Bound era, has been undefeated against Creston, winning all six times. They added a seventh on Thursday.
Creston kept it close in the first set, but the Huskies were leading 23-16. The energy shifted as the Panthers scored six unanswered points to get as close as 23-22.
The Panthers run began after junior libero Jensan Tussey dug up a tough attack from Husky senior Kya Cochran. Tussey led back-row defense with 23 digs before a leg injury plagued her in the final set.
After the Huskies failed to return the ball from Tussey's dig, sophomore Bentleigh Collier scored the next point for Creston on a beautiful kill to the back right corner. Collier tallied seven kills on the night, matching senior Hope Henderson. Leading offense at the net was junior Ricci Johnston with 9 kills.
Senior Nora Barton helped keep the streak alive with back-to-back aces. The first serve hit the net before dropping into Husky territory. Miscommunication by Winterset gave the Panthers another point on Barton's second ace.
Barton was 20-21 at the service line for three aces, while fellow senior Kennedy Strider was a perfect 17-17 with two aces.
The final point of Creston's run, bringing the score 23-22, was a solo block by Johnston against an attack by Husky star Dottie Reed. The Winterset senior had a phenomenal game with eight kills on 23 attempts.
Penalties held up the Panthers' momentum as they ended the game 25-23.
"I felt like we just struggled to execute in key moments and so then struggled to keep momentum," Sharp said.
It would be an uphill battle for the rest of the night. While the Panthers took a stake in the game 5-4, the Huskies drummed up seven unanswered points. The Panthers couldn't respond and ended the game 25-18.
Tonight, Carroll will be on the visitor's end with a start set for 7:15 p.m. before the Panthers are back on the road Thursday for a triangular against Wayne and Clarke at Osceola.
Stat leaders on the night
Serves
Nora Barton 20-21, 3 aces
Kennedy Strider 17-17, 2 aces
Attacks
Ricci Johnston 23-26, 9 kills
Hope Henderson 21-24, 7 kills
Bentleigh Collier 23-29, 7 kills
Assists
Marlee Stalker 25
Digs
Jensen Tussey 23
Nora Barton 16
Hope Henderson 14
Blocks
H. Henderson — 4 assists
R. Johnston — 2 assists
B. Collier — 1 solo, 1 assist