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Blues Drop 3-1 Decision To Green Wave
The Parry McCluer High School volleyball team swept a varsity doubleheader with Highland County before falling to Narrows in a series of Pioneer District matches in Buena Vista last week.
The Fighting Blues entered the penultimate week of the regular season with a 9-11 overall record and a 3-4 mark in Pioneer competition.
On Tuesday of last week, PM claimed a pair of bestof- three matches in a varsity twinbill against Highland, winning 25-4, 25-13 in the first match and 25-18, 25-10 in the nightcap. The dominant scorelines allowed the Blues to feature their entire roster on the court.
“Tonight, we had the opportunity to play our whole team, which is exciting to do,” PM head coach Jessie Moala said.
In game one, Natalie Mohler totaled 10 assists and seven service aces for the Blues, and Peira Conner added six aces and two kills. Josie Martinez and Kadence Zollman tallied four kills apiece, while Emory Slagle chipped in a pair of kills.
Mohler then posted 17 assists and four aces in the second contest. Conner recorded eight kills and five digs, and Keely Mahaffey – who collected her 100th kill of the season during the doubleheader – notched six kills. Slagle had three kills and five aces, and Allie Cullen also finished with three kills. Logan Vest paced the defense with seven digs, and Remi Hickman contributed four digs, two kills and an ace.
With several younger players seeing extended action, Moala credited veterans like Conner, Mohler and Vest with helping the Blues maintain a high level of play.
“Natalie played the entire night all the way around, so she was our leader on and off the court. Logan was really essential. … Peira is just always really good at lifting her teammates up,” Moala said. “I thought those three were monumental in keeping the game going and keeping us up.”
Narrows 3, PM 1
Narrows remained unbeaten in district play with a 3-1 victory over PM in Buena Vista on Thursday.
Kailyn Jones tallied nine kills, four blocks and three aces to help the Green Wave (11-3 overall, 5-0 district) to a 25-17, 11-25, 25-21, 25-14 victory. Reagan Freeman added eight kills and two blocks for Narrows, while Karsyn Reed notched 23 assists and three aces.
Zollman registered a match-high 10 kills for the Blues. Mahaffey totaled nine kills, 14 assists, 10 digs and five aces, and Slagle recorded eight kills and two aces. Vest led the PM defense with 13 digs, reaching the 200 mark for the season, while Mohler had 20 assists and 10 digs.
Jones had the hot hand early, posting four kills, three blocks and a pair of aces in the opening set to lead the Green Wave to a 25-17 win.
PM countered with a dominant second frame. Mahaffey was the focal point, collecting three kills and distributing eight assists in the set. The Blues also got two kills apiece from Cullen, Slagle and Zollman as they evened up the match with a 25-11 rout.
The set proved how well the Blues can perform when they can get in system and run their offense.
“When we were playing our game, we played well,” Moala said. “I thought Keely had some really nice kills; Emory was finding open spots really well.”
But PM couldn’t maintain its momentum, and Narrows regained the lead by securing a seesaw third set. The Green Wave took an early 9-4 lead before the teams exchanged 9-1 runs, with the score swinging to a 13-10 PM advantage and then back to a 19-14 edge for Narrows, which went on to win by a 25-21 margin.
The Green Wave used another big spurt to take command of the fourth set – this time an 8-1 stretch that gave them an insurmountable 18-9 lead. Jones and Freeman had three kills apiece in the stanza as the visitors completed a regular-season sweep of the Blues. Narrows had won 3-0 at home against PM on Sept. 19.
Conner and Cullen each tallied four kills for the Blues, with Conner also notching two aces. Brooklyn McCroskey finished with seven kills and three aces for Narrows, and Addyson Johnson added four kills and two blocks.
Vest’s milestone was a clear highlight for PM. Across two seasons as the Blues’ regular libero, the senior has developed into a consistent passer and a source of energy on the back row.
“She’s put in a lot of work in practice – she always asks for more reps, more touches – and I think it’s really paying off,” Moala said of Vest. “She has a lot of fight and grit in her, which is really beneficial to the team.”
PM was slated to play host to Craig County on Monday. The Blues and the Rockets will meet again in New Castle next Tuesday, and the Blues will conclude the regular season on Thursday, Oct. 24, at Bath County, starting with junior varsity action at 5:30 p.m. on both nights.
