Lady Hornets heating up at right time of year
By KRIS BAGLEY sports@leader-news.com

The Lady Hornets claimed a rivalry win over Ganado Friday in an important volleyball match.

Louise will start district play Friday and with their 3-0 win over Ganado - with wins of 25-23, 25-17 and 25-21 - Head Coach Bryan Branch said his team is performing well as district competition approaches.

"It's good for us," Branch said. "It should be building our confidence up a bit. It's like I've told the girls, no one in our district is as good as the teams that we are beating. If we just take care of ourselves, then we don't have to worry about the other team and we should win."

The Lady Hornets received a lift from sophomore Amber Bain in recent weeks. Branch said her rapidly improved play has been a much-welcomed surprise.

"The emergence of Amber Bain is just a total difference maker in our whole attitude," Branch said. "She is being super aggressive at hitting. She's just flat dominating when she's up there."

Bain is one of the tallest members of Louise's varsity volleyball team and is a looming presence on defense at the net.

She has been hesitant to take advantage of her size and strength until now. With the season entering its most crucial time, Bain has decided to be a force on the court.

"She looks intimidating and, as I've told Amber, she's the nicest girl in the whole world, but she has to quit being so nice on the court," Branch said. "She's finally getting to that point. It's not that she's being disrespectful or arrogant or anything, she's just being more aggressive and assertive."

With Louise playing host to Nordheim, Branch and the rest of the Lady Hornets are hoping all of Louise will share their enthusiasm and provide a major home-court advantage for the district opener.