The volleyball season for Bishop Garrigan is over after a hard fought battle resulted in a three set to one loss to Newell Fonda in last nights Class 1A – Region 4 semifinal match.
After the teams played evenly early in set one, a couple big runs gave Newell-Fonda the advantage on their way to a 25-17 win.
The Golden Bears would battle back in set 2 as the teams traded early runs. Bishop Garrigan went up early 3-0, only to be answered by a 3-0 Mustang run to tie the set at 3. The Golden Bears surged right back in front scoring 4 in a row, but not to be outdone, the Mustangs answered with a 4-0 run to tie it at 7. The Golden Bears began to separate after that, going on another big scoring run, at one point leading by 7. The Mustangs kept battling back and wouldn’t go quietly, eventually taking a 22-20 lead. With their backs against the wall, the Golden Bears fended off a couple set points to eventually win 27-25 and tie the match at 1 set apiece.
In match 3, Newell-Fonda, overwhelmed Bishop Garrigan, winning 25-11. Set 4 began very similarly, with the Mustangs racing out to a 15-6 lead. The Golden Bears again refused to go quietly, going on an 11-0 run with Molly Joyce serving to surge back in front 17-15, looking to force a 5th set. It was not meant to be however, as Newell-Fonda rallied to tie the match at 17. After Bishop Garrigan went up 19-17, the Mustangs closed with 8 consecutive points with Kierra Jungers serving to win the 4th set 25-19 and end the season for Bishop Garrigan.
Audi Crooks had 8 kills and 4 blocks for Bishop Garrigan, while Maggie Vaske had 23 assists and 8 digs. Molly Joyce had 19 digs, 7 kills and 6 assists on her night in the loss.
For the Mustangs, Macy Sievers had 15 kills and 7 digs, while Mary Walker added 12 kills and 3 blocks. Sophie Stewart led the team with 19 assists, while Anna Bellcock chipped in 17.
With the loss, the Golden Bears finish the season at 12-17, while Newell-Fonda improves to 28-3 and advances to the regional final against Janesville on Wednesday.
