Girls' Varsity Volleyball Kicks off Season

By Samantha Silverbrand, staff reporter

Photo by Emma Nemes

The girls varsity volleyball team set off the season with a spectacular win against Bethany Christian Academy last Saturday and another against Sturgis West on Monday. Sadly their winning streak has been cut short this Wednesday with a loss against rivals Pope John Paul II.

Starting off the season with a boom, captains Shannon Slater and Makaila Lyons made some astounding plays on the floor, Makaila scoring first point against Bethany with a resounding spike over the net. Winning the first set, Sturgis carried on with confidence. Throughout the second set there were some amazing plays made by some of the newer players this year, freshmen Deja Andrews and

Lauren Smith. Throughout the set Bethany

Photo by Emma Nemes

made some surprising plays, giving Sturgis East a tough time trying to win against them in the second set and  Bethany ended up winning 25-22. After losing the second set, the Sturgis varsity girls gained the determination to do better in the next set. Upping their game to their best playing, they ended up winning the third set 25-14 with their willpower and concentration on the game. Entering the fourth set, the Sturgis East girls went in with their hearts set on the win. Grayce Rogers made some fantastic digs, passing the ball for the winning point in the fourth set, final score being 25-22, giving Sturgis East their first win of the season.

Monday brought the anticipated game against Sturgis West. Already feeling the heat of East, Sturgis West brought their A-game, making some good volleys, but not quite good enough. Sturgis East dominated the court making volley after volley, some terminal hits being made by junior Hannah Taylor and sophomore Emma Nemes. The Sturgis East volleyball team had come to win, winning the first three sets within a time period of only 45 minutes to complete the game. All and all it was a good day for Sturgis volleyball on both sides of the net. Sturgis West showed great competitive spirit and sportsmanship, and their games will always be anticipated in the future.
Finally on Wednesday was the game against PJPII. It was a hard fight for the win in the first set, but Sturgis finally won 26-24 with a well deserved win for the first set. After the first set things seemed to change, and Sturgis was a little too off their game, letting Pope John Paul take the initiative to win the next three sets. Even though Sturgis lost the game, the first set was the best of the season.  
The Sturgis East varsity volleyball team will continue the season with their next game on Saturday in Hanover against South Shore Regional Technical School. They hope to keep a positive attitude for the outlook of the season and to come out as a better team this year by  improving their skills and working as a team.