Straight sweep

Up and down and all around. At times it may seem like a roller coaster ride, but the Windsor volleyball team straightens out the ride when it counts.

Windsor put Niwot away with a 25-14, 25-21, 25-10 victory in a Class 4A Northern Conference victory Tuesday at Reg Figal Gymnasium.

The eighth-ranked Wizards (9-3 overall, 7-2 conference) came out strong, but found themselves in a dogfight in the second set.

“We lacked some intensity in the second set for sure, but it was nice to see the kids pick it up and finish strong,” Windsor head coach LaVerne Huston said.

Windsor blew past the Cougars (3-8, 2-6) in the first set behind the strong service game of sophomore outside hitter Morgan Shimp. Leading 14-9, Shimp stepped to the line and delivered five straight points, including three aces, to put the Wizards up 19-9.

“I needed to come out and prove I could serve better,” said Shimp, who added eight digs. “We were down, so I needed to get us back up.”

In the second set, Windsor raced out to a 9-5 lead, but the Cougars made a run of their own. Niwot went on a 6-0 run to take an 11-9 lead and seized the momentum.
Sophomore libero Emily Elliott knotted the score at 14-14 after a service ace, but again Niwot wouldn’t back down. The Cougars went up 21-19 and looked to take the set until Windsor dug deep and refocused.

Sophomore Jordyn Kohles started the rally with a kill and then senior setter Rachel Weakland took over. Weakland set up senior Katie Olson twice, found Kohles again and spiked home the game-winning point to give Windsor a 2-0 lead.

“In the second game we come out and win it without really trying,” senior middle blocker Tayler Birdsall said.

The third set, however, Windsor ended its roller-coaster match with a dominating performance. The Wizards went up 8-3 behind a pair of kills from Olson and one from Weakland.

Birdsall drove home a kill, blocked a Niwot shot for a point and used a tip shot to put the game out of reach at 15-6. Senior Brittanny Ross served out the match to give Windsor its third straight win.

“I was proud of the kids the way they regrouped and found some emotion and started playing with a little more energy,” Huston said.

Next up for the Wizards, a 7 p.m. match on Thursday at Greeley West.

NHS 14 21 10
WHS 25 25 25

WHS — Kills: Katie Olson 14, Alexa Griffith-Hardy 8, Sara Larson 5, Tayler Birdsall 4, Rachel Weakland 4, Jordyn Kohles 4. Aces: Morgan Shimp 3, Weakland 3, Olson 2, Emily Elliott 1. Assists: Weakland 31. Blocks: Olson 4, Griffith-Hardy 3, Birdsall 2, Larson 1, Kohles 1. Digs: Weakland 12, Elliott 9, Shimp 8, Rebekah Moser 6, Brittanny Ross 4, Griffith-Hardy 2, Olson 2, Larson 1.