Lady Hornets clinch playoffs with victory
By KRIS BAGLEY sports@leader-news.com

The Lady Hornets returned home victoriously after a road trip to Nordheim.

Louise's varsity volleyball team claimed another victim and moved to 6-0 in district competition after a 3-0 win over Nordheim.

The win clinched playoffs for the Lady Hornets. Even four straight losses to end the season cannot push Louise out of the post season.

When the Lady Hornets found out they had clinched the playoffs, the girls were pleased, but not satisfied yet. The district crown is still in question.

"They were excited," Branch said. "We were in the weight room Wednesday and I announced, 'Well, congratulations. You're in the playoffs.' You could just see a big smile come across their faces. They're excited, but at the same time we said, 'We're not through - we still want to win district.'"

The Lady Hornets clinched the post season with wins of 25-12, 25-10 and 25-11 over Nordheim.

Amber Bain led the Lady Hornets with 12 kills while Sarah Williamson made 11, Gabby Foster and Katie Brown both made two and Lauren Gresham made one kill.

Kirsten Machicek led the offense with 22 assists as she fed Louise's hitters.

Louise's servers earned a total 11 aces in the match. Foster led the way with four while Beverly Holik served up three aces and Machicek, Williamson, Brown and Bain each had one ace.

The defense was solid for Louise as seven different girls registered digs on the night. Williamson made a team-high five digs while Gresham made four, Machicek made two and Kierra Thornton, Holik, Kelsi Kutac and Bain each made one dig.

Brown and Bain each made one block on the night.

The Lady Hornets returned home Friday night to face Woodsboro for homecoming.

Louise will end the season with three more matches, two of which will be away from home.

The Lady Hornets travel to Runge Tuesday, return home next Friday to host Tivoli and end the regular season at Pettus Oct. 23.