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NILES — Liz Stockdale knew exactly what her team was in need of.

The Brandywine setter could tell her team’s energy was low after dropping set three to South Haven after winning the first two.

Following a post-set pep talk, the Bobcats regrouped and went on to win 25-12, 25-13, 20-25, 25-22 in front of the home crowd.

“After that third set, we talked about how we need to get our energy back,” Stockdale said. ”We have to play as a team, not just for ourselves. When we play as a team, we play much better.”

“We came out playing as a collective unit,” said Brandywine coach Emily Zablocki-Kohler. “Lots of talking and lots of excitement in games one and two. We kind of fell apart in set three and then we built up to it in game four.

Stockdale tallied four kills, 22 assists and nine digs and Kadence Brumitt three aces, 19 kills and 13 digs. Clara DePriest contributed six aces, five kills, 10 assists and 10 digs, while Hope Typer added three aces and 12 digs, Kallie Solloway six kills and Olivia Laurita 15 digs.

“[Liz] always puts balls in play that no one else in the world would be able to play,” Zablocki-Kohler said. “Brummitt is our number two hitter most days and DePriest served amazing tonight. Our defense played really well on the back row. We’ve cleaned up our passing a lot and our serve-receive was much better. We’re making a lot of moves in the right direction.”

Zablocki-Kohler liked the way the team responded to adversity following the third set.

“We talk a lot about how we need to just do what we do,” she said. “We can only control what comes to us but we have to play as a team and we have to believe that everybody is going to do their part on the team. As long as we believe in each other, we play much better than if we have the slightest bit of doubt.

“We have to remember that we do trust our teammates, they’re out there and they’re going to get the job done.”

Stockdale has embraced the leadership role bestowed upon her.

“I try to make sure everyone is in a good mood and ready to play,” she said.

The Bobcats (8-8-2) will try to keep the momentum going through Saturday’s Buchanan Quad tournament. The quad will feature Buchanan, St. Joseph and Michigan Lutheran.

“We’re going into this playing three teams we already lost to,” Stockdale said. “We’re going to try to exact revenge on those teams. I hope we come in as a team and that we win and get our stuff together.”

 

Buchanan at River Valley

It took longer to drive to Three Oaks than it did for visiting Buchanan to sweep River Valley in volleyball Wednesday night.

The Bucks defeated the Mustangs 25-9 and 25-22 to improve to 10-5 on the season.

Faith Carson led the way with 10 kills and two blocks, while Josie West finished with five kills and four blocks. Alyssa Carson added five kills.

Alyvia Hickok had 15 assists and Riley Capron 10 assists. Hailey Jonatzke led the team with six digs and three aces.

Buchanan will host a quad tournament scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday.