Rams’ season ends in regionals
CRESTON - There would be no comeback for Glenwood on this night.
Just 18 days after the Rams rallied back from a 2-1 deficit in an emotional Senior Night victory, Creston smacked 62 kills and never let Glenwood back into the final game of a 26-24, 25-16, 21-25, 25-12 Panther victory in the Class 4A, Region 3 opening round last Monday.
“I thought we came out and played hard that first set and came up short and then we struggled a couple times in the second set but had some good stretches and then we came back in the third and I thought dominated that set,” said Glenwood coach Maria Jacobus. “That fourth set we got down early and we were never really able to get into any rhythm. My hat’s off to Creston. We played the best we could.”
Glenwood trailed 5-1 in game four and then saw the Panthers close the match on a 15-4 run with its strong hitting. Creston was led by Natalie Mostek’s 19 kills. Four of her teammates also added at least nine kills each. For the game, Creston out-hit Glenwood 62-43.
“We knew they had a strong group of hitters and we’d been preparing on our defense and working on blocking,” Jacobus said. “So we knew they were going to come out and hit hard. Playing at home gives you a little bit of a burst of energy and they played well. We thought we prepared well but a few times our blocking got away from us or our hand position was a little off and unfortunately we got down in that fourth set and were never able to get our defense going. They played really strong offense against us.”
Lyndie Van Ness led the Rams with 13 kills. Courtney Magnussen added 11 kills and four blocks.
The Rams close out their season with a record of 16-14, the program’s first winning season since 2007. The 16 wins are a school record, eclipsing the 14 wins set by the 2012 team in Jacobus’ first season at the helm.
The Rams lose handful of seniors off this year’s squad, including three, three year contributors in Halie Darrow, Jana King and Magnussen.
“I’ve had the privilege these seniors for three years and it’s been an honor,” said Jacobus. “But looking to next season I have a great group of juniors coming back and some starters and a core group who’ve had some varsity experience. We’ve got some really good young kids who can contribute us in our freshman and sophomore classes. We’re going to miss those three dearly but the future looks really good for us.”