Marion High concluded its volleyball season Saturday with a two-game loss to Hoisington in the opening round of the sub-state tournament at Southeast of Saline.
The Warriors, who came in as the No. 7 seed with an 8-22 season record, lost to the Cardinals (33-5), 16-25, 11-25.
Marion started strong and trailed Hoisington only by a point at 11-12 in Game 1. But the Cardinals took control by scoring seven of the next nine points for a 19-13 advantage.
A kill by Julia Zeiner brought the Warriors to within 16-20, but Hoisington closed out the match with a 6-0 run behind the serving of Laura Richards.
In Game 2, Marion fell behind 0-3, then battled back to 4-6 before Hoisington slowly lengthened its lead to 11-7.
Becca Maier then served for a 9-0 run to give Hoisington control.
“Their floor defense was incredible,” coach Jim Versch said.
“They picked up everything we spiked at them. Our normal kills that we usually got from Julia and Kayley (Heerey) were dug up almost every time.
“It was a disappointing way to end the season,” he said of the loss, “but the future of MHS volleyball looks very bright. The team will still be very young, but the majority of starters will have a wealth of experience.
“With the addition of a few key players, this team should be very strong in the league next year.”
Lyons quad—Marion completed its regular season schedule Oct. 16 by taking two of three matches.
The Warriors lost the opening match to Haven (17-25, 18-25), but came right back to beat Lyons (29-27, 25-18) and Halstead (25-19, 25-23).
“We played three matches back to back, and I felt after we lost the first one it would be a long evening,” coach Jim Versch said.
“But the MHS varsity bounced back to beat a young Lyons team...and a tough but frustrated Halstead team.”
The 2-1 record for the evening gave Marion a 5-6 mark in league play, good for seventh place.
