Mayville volleyball cannot be accused of being boring.
The Cardinals' sound defensive play leads to exciting rallies and creates an entertaining viewing experience. Most importantly for Mayville, it keeps them competitive in every match it plays.
Mayville's defense was the foundation once again on Thursday night as the Cardinals won three straight sets after dropping the first to beat St. Mary's Springs 25-27, 25-17, 25-15, 25-19 in a home Flyway match.
"I'm like the old football coach that loves 3 yards and a cloud of dust," Mayville coach Alan Capps said. "I think we play as close to volleyball as that analogy goes. We talk about staying in ball until the whistle."
The momentum in the match shifted near the end of the first set. Mayville (11-8 overall, 3-1 in Flyway) trailed by as many as seven, but battled back and had a chance at set point.
Capps said the early deficit was another reminder to his team that they need to be ready to play from the start.
"We had a great comeback, and we had an opportunity [to win the set]," Capps said. "We're trying to learn that we've got to start matches strong."
The combination of seniors Aubrey Thom, a setter, and Emily Derkowski, an outside hitter, got the Cardinals going offensively. Thom, who finished with 41 assists, got into a rhythm and found Derkowski often in the first two sets.
Derkowski had 16 kills and 11 in those opening two sets. She said the team knew it was a must-win match in the conference race.
"We knew this was important for us and we did it for ourselves," Derkowski said. "We were just focusing on growing as a team and it was important for us to put our best out right away."
Capps said he was happy that Derkowski continued to be aggressive despite five hitting errors in the second set.
He said watching Derkowski has been a breath of fresh air with how many players specialize and play hundreds of club matches in the offseason.
"The neat thing is that in a world that is dominated by club players, she hasn't been a club player," Capps said. "That's just old-school, athletic kid that works hard and that's kind of fun in this day and age."
Mayville once again got contributions from its talented sophomore class, for Leah Vossekuil and Lilian Mansueto had nine and eight kills, respectively.
Capps said Mansueto's experience from her freshman year as a defensive specialist has allowed her to be a well-rounded player.
"Lilian Mansueto was our libero as a freshman last year," Capps said. "We brought her up because we had no choice. She did good, we baptized her by fire.
"Now she's swinging outside hit, but she still has that mentality of go keep the ball off the ground."
Springs (11-8, 3-1) got 15 kills from senior Braelyn Lewis. Senior libero Lexi Coon was excellent defensively with 30 digs.
PHOTO GALLERY: Springs at Mayville volleyball - 9/26/2024
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