Lebanon’s Katie Esther spent her freshman season watching senior hitters Mikalyn Callahan and Carrington Peace rack up the kills.
During Monday’s season-opener, the 5’8” sophomore racked up a few of her own.
In her first varsity start, Esther’s hot hand helped power the Lady Jackets past Branson 2-1 (25-19, 14-25, 25-13).
After the first two games saw each team get out to quick leads and trade victories, the final set came down to persistence and execution.
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Lebanon went to the big-hitting Esther early and often, and the right-hander responded with a team-high 13 kills.
“It was intense out there,” Esther said. “But I just had to focus on getting it in the court and staying behind the ball. This year I’ve come on a lot stronger and I’ve been able to do my part because I’ve been a lot more confident in what I’m doing.”
Lady Jackets head coach Jenny Collins was pleased with her young hitter.
“Katie flies,” Collins said. “She’s just one of those players that makes everything look easy. She just looks graceful out there on the court. Right there at the end, I looked at my setter and said ‘get her the ball.’”
Esther wasn’t the only Lady Jacket relishing her first start of the season.
After missing the 2015 season due to a knee injury, Senior Faith Alwardt’s 12 kills were a welcome addition to Lebanon’s front line.
“As a senior, she wants that riding on her shoulders,” Collins said. “She wants to be a finisher.”
For Branson and head coach Becky Lipasek, defensive miscues on longer points proved to be the difference-maker in the third set.
“We definitely need to see better floor defense,” Lipasek said. “When the other team’s attacking, we need to find a way to get some balls back up. I just didn’t see enough tough digs coming from our defense.”
When Branson saw early scoring opportunities come back across the net, they tended to unravel more often than not. Still, Lipasek saw bright spots on the evening.
With a young, inexperienced back row, consistency is going to be a work in progress early in the season; however, the younger players are out there for a reason.
They can play.
“When you have three freshmen passing, and the other team’s serving, you would think nerves or some things going on,” Lipasek said. “I really thought being the home opener, and them being young; I thought we might struggle a little bit, but that was the one area that was solid tonight."
Both teams are back in action this week.
Lebanon (1-0) hosts Marshfield on Tuesday, while Branson welcomes Buffalo on Thursday.
Varsity Final: Lebanon – 2, Branson – 1 (25-19, 14-25, 25-13)
JV Final: Lebanon – 2, Branson – 0 (25-17, 26-24)
Frosh Final: Branson – 2, Lebanon – 0 (25-17, 25-19)
