Newly state-ranked team set for success
By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
The newly state-ranked Big Foot girls volleyball team wasted little time in adding to its victory total Tuesday night.
Big Foot, ranked eighth in the first Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association Division 2 poll of the season, rolled past visiting Clinton 25-12, 25-9, 25-16 to improve to 2-0 in the Rock Valley Conference and 11-2 overall.
Leaders for the Chiefs were senior Kennedy Hehr (12 kills, 4 aces), senior Gloria Esarco (1 block), sophomore Kampbell Hehr (1 block, 34 assists), junior Payton Courier (1 block) and sophomore Sophie Foster (12 digs).
The win Tuesday came on the heels of another sweep last week, this time over visiting Palmyra-Eagle, 25-13, 25-7, 25-17.
Everything clicked in that three-set sweep, Big Foot coach Caitlin Dowden said.
“Last Thursday’s match against Palmyra was a true team win,” she said. “All players who were healthy to play contributed to the win, which is always great to see.
“We played solid Big foot volleyball and really set the tempo for the match.”
Leading the way for the Chiefs were Kennedy Hehr (13 kills, 6 digs, 3 aces), Kampbell Hehr (36 assists) and Foster (3 aces).
As for the state ranking, even though it’s still extremely early in the season, it’s never a bad thing to have a team earn a little recognition, Dowden said.
“I was extremely happy to see us crack the top 10 in Division 2,” she said. “I think the girls have had a great start to the season, and it is always nice to have their success and hard work acknowledged.
“Obviously, while it’s great to be ranked now, the ultimate ranking that matters is the one at the end of the season. Hopefully, we use this as motivation to climb the ladder in Division 2.”
Two-time defending state champion Catholic Memorial holds the top spot in the poll, followed by Green Bay Notre Dame, Kettle Moraine Lutheran, Altoona and Appleton Xavier.
Rounding out the top 10 are Richland Center, Grafton, Big Foot, Osceola and fellow RVC school Edgerton.
Luxemburg-Casco, Plymouth, Wisconsin Lutheran and another RVC squad, East Troy, were named honorable mention.
Back at it this week
Big Foot returned to conference action Thursday night at Brodhead, followed by a road trip to Edgerton on Saturday for the Edgerton Invitational.
The goals for the upcoming matches remain the same as they have been all season, Dowden said.
“We need to play Big Foot volleyball,” she said. “We need to set the tone and pace of the match.
“If we do this, we will continue to see success. When we play Big Foot volleyball, we are working together on all cylinders. Each night in conference, we want to go 1-0, and each tournament game, our goal is the same. We need to take each match one at a time.”
