FIELD TWP- Life on the road apparently suits the North Woods volleyball team, as the Grizzlies came home this past week from trips to Mesabi East, Deer River and South Ridge with their undefeated record intact.
During last Thursday’s battle at Mesabi East, that unblemished record seemed initially in jeopardy, as the Grizzlies were uncharacteristically out of sync and fell behind in the first game 24-9. North Woods shook out of their doldrums with an eight-point run before losing 25-17, but that run would prove instrumental in the outcome of the match.
“They saw that they could come back from anything,” said Grizzlies Head Coach Kaileen Redmond. “We took that and ran with it, with the momentum, and really kept our energy up, which was critical to get us where we needed to be.”
The second game was a torrid affair, with a revitalized Grizzlies attack holding the lead through 10-9. A three-point flurry by the Giants gave them the lead at 12-10, and the heated skirmish continued until Mesabi East finally prevailed 25-23.
Down 2-0 for the first time this season, the Grizzlies appeared to be in trouble early in the third game, trailing 11-6, but then the miscues that had haunted North Woods early on shifted over to the Giants. Trailing by one at 17-16, the Grizzlies got three kills from Izzy Pascuzzi, a flip by Carsyn Burnett to an open hole in the Giants’ defense to go up 20-17. With Britin Lappi serving, North Woods turned a 21-18 lead into a 25-18 win.
Now brimming with confidence, the Grizzlies streaked to a 6-0 advantage in the fourth game, with Lauren Burnett figuring prominently in the run with a stuff at the net, an acrobatic save, and a massive kill shot. A pair of kills by Pascuzzi put the Grizzlies up 12-3, and Lauren Burnett short-circuited a Giants comeback attempt with a kill at 15-11. Tessa Burnett took over at serve and scored a pair of aces as the Grizzlies ran the lead up to nine at 20-11, and Pascuzzi closed out the 25-16 win with a kill to even the match at 2-2.
The Giants wouldn’t go quietly in the final game, grabbing a 5-1 lead. But the Grizzlies clawed their way back and took the lead at 8-7 on an ace serve by Carsyn Burnett. North Woods never trailed again, rising from the early ashes to claim the match win with a 15-10 victory.
Adjustments were the key to the comeback win, Redmond said.
“Our serve receive needs some work, but we’re getting there, and we’re making some changes as needed,” she said. “We made the adjustment and pulled back another person to pass, and it worked out for us. We saw that they were playing a little bit shorter game on us, so we just adjusted our defense to really tuck in closer and focused on putting up the double block and filling in from there. And like I mentioned before, our energy tonight was off the charts, and that made such a huge difference.”
Back on track
The Grizzlies returned to their straight-set winning way with 3-0 victories at Deer River on Monday and South Ridge on Tuesday. In both matches, North Woods was tested in the final game.
The Grizzlies held steady in the first game against Deer River, winning 25-20, and dominated the second 25-10. The Warriors made a game of it in the third, but North Woods held on for the 25-22 match winner.
The Grizzlies weren’t seriously threatened in the first two games against South Ridge, winning 25-15 and 25-17. The third game, however, was a battle royale as the two teams put together a barnburner that went to extra points, with North Woods coming out on top 32-30.
The Grizzlies will put their 6-0 record on the line at home on Tuesday against Cherry, then hit the road to Floodwood for a match on Thursday. North Woods will play in the eight-team Rock Ridge tournament on Saturday, Sept. 21.