By Chris Bennett
Sports correspondent
Strong energy and winning attitude led to a tournament title for the Elkhorn Area High School girls volleyball team.
The Elks won an invitational Sept. 16 at Mayville against four other schools – Mayville, Johnson Creek, Wautoma and Rio.
The Elks played a Southern Lakes Conference match Tuesday at Delavan-Darien, and play in an invitational today at Badger High School in Lake Geneva.
The invite victory at Mayville is the first in the three-year tenure of coach Justin Diderrich.
“The girls came into the tournament with a mindset of winning,” Diderrich said. “They played very consistent all day. They dictated the tempo and pace, and were able to win every match in two (sets).”
The Elks beat Wautoma 25-13, 25-16 in the title match, but not before having to sit around for a time.
“We had a two-hour break before the championship match, so I was nervous we would come out a bit slow,” Diderrich said. “Thankfully, my concerns did not come true. We jumped out to an 8-1 lead and never looked back.
“They’re energy was amazing, and we were never losing at any point in the match. Once we won, the girls were so excited.”
Adrienne Bain served for 15 assists, including four aces, and Sarah Rychlak finished with eight digs. Kate Passler tallied six kills.
The Elks opened the invite with a 25-15, 25-17 victory against Mayville. Passler finished with 11 kills and Bain tallied nine assists.
The Elks then beat Rio 25-23, 25-12 and Johnson Creek 25-11, 25-10.
Against Rio, Bain finished with 16 assists and Passler registered 11 digs. Bain finished with seven assists and Rylchak tallied nine kills against Johnson Creek.
