The Haines High School volleyball team jumped into the fire at its first competition last weekend in Wrangell, facing 2012 state qualifiers Craig and Klawock along with the host Wolves and a Ketchikan junior varsity squad.
“It’s different than practice, when you see those heavy hitters,” said coach Judy Erekson.
The Glacier Bear varsity started with a 14-25, 18-25 loss to Wrangell on Friday. Haines then rebounded to topple Class 4A Ketchikan’s JV team, 25-11, 25-13.
The highlight of the opening day for the Glacier Bears was edging Klawock, 25-20, in game one of their match. Klawock recovered for a 7-25 win in game two.
“The second game was revenge for beating them the first game,” Erekson said. Strong serving helped secure the opening-game win, she said.
Saturday, Haines matched up with defending Class 2A state runner-up Craig, falling 11-25, 18-25. “They are the top team again this year,” Erekson said.
The girls improved their second time against the Wolves, splitting with Wrangell, 17-25, 25-19. The Glacier Bears again bested the Ketchikan JV in two games before heading back to the upper Lynn Canal.
Seniors Coral Bauer, Libby Jacobson, Adalee Lari and Jamie Messerschmidt, juniors Celia Bower and Megan Tuohy, sophomore Bailey Stuart, and freshmen Bozhi Sebens and Olivia Wing competed for the Haines varsity.
Jacobson, Messerschmidt and Tuohy each saw some time at setter, reflecting the team’s versatility. “We tried a lot of offenses, because (Jacobson) is one of our best hitters,” Erekson said.
She said junior Bower, a newcomer to the team, is “a natural athlete” who “knows the game.” Wing was another bright spot, getting some court time as a freshman in the front row.
Bower, Sebens, Stuart, Tuohy, Wing, and freshmen Gabrielle Galinski and Shaye Otton also suited up for the Haines JV.
“Due to a JV team scheduling mix-up, we had the JV play Metlakatla varsity and the Craig JV so our JV girls could get some playing time in,” Erekson said.
Against the heightened competition, the Glacier Bears came up short against the Metlakatla varsity, 5-25, 10-25, and the Craig JV, 11-25, 11-25.
“We weren’t worried about beating other teams as much as figuring out our program,” said Erekson, who noted much of the JV was “brand new” to high school play and a few athletes didn’t make the trip because they hadn’t attended the required number of practices.
A planned trek to Ketchikan next weekend was scrapped to avoid having two lengthy trips in a row, as the Bears will be in Metlakatla the following weekend, Oct. 25-26. That seeding tournament will help determine team rankings for regionals.
The other seeding tournament is Nov. 22-23 in Haines. Volunteers are needed to serve as line judges and fill other roles. Contact the school at 766-6725 for more information.