November 13, 2013

Spikers power their way to District 15 title

By Neal A. Shipman
Farmer Editor

The Watford City varsity volleyball team powered its way to the District 15 championship crown on Thursday evening with a 3-1 win over a very good Trinity Christian team. The Wolves, who entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed, advanced to the title game after receiving a first round bye, and then defeating Trenton, 3-0, in semifinal action.
With the win, the Wolves will advance to the Region 8 Tournament where they meet up against Burke County, the No. 4 team from the District 16 Tournament, at 3 p.m.
“We haven’t played Burke County this year, but they were at our home tournament in September. They are always a tournament team and we will have to be ready to play them,” states Nancy Deutsch, Wolves’ head coach. “We will most likely then play Stanley in the second round, and they are a tough team to play.”
According to Deutsch, the Wolves lost to Stanley earlier in the season in four sets.
District 15 Semifinals
Watford City 3, Trenton 0

While Watford City swept the Trenton Tigers in three games in Tuesday’s semifinal action of the District 15 Tournament, the wins didn’t come easy.
Watford City took the first game, 25-20, and then squeaked by the Tigers, 25-23, in the second game. The Wolves closed out the sweep winning the third game, 25-18.
The Wolves had 11 service aces and 38 kills in the match against the Tigers with Tessa Dwyer recording five service aces, while Amanda Mogen had 13 kills.
Mogen also led the team defensively with one block, while she and Kara Langerud ended the game with 19 digs.
Individual statistics for Watford City from the match were as follows:
Aces: Tessa Dwyer, 5; Kara Langerud, 3; Tori Hopkins, 2; Amanda Mogen, 1.
Kills: Mogen, 13; Ricki Lindley, 9; Dwyer, 6; Langerud, 5; Hopkins, 2; Elise Hadley, 2; Lea Arndt, 1.
Assists: Hopkins, 27; Tarynn Jacobson, 4; Langerud, 3; Lindley, 2.
Blocks: Mogen, 1.
Digs: Mogen, 19; Langerud, 19;  Jacobson, 14; Bailee Garmann, 12; Dwyer, 8; Hopkins, 7; Lea Arndt, 4; Lindley, 2.

District 15 Championship
Watford City 3, Trinity Christian 1

Tournament championship games are supposed to be, by their very nature, extremely competitive.
And Thursday night’s District 15 Volleyball Tournament championship was all of that as the Wolves and Trinity Crusaders had their fans sitting on the edges of their seats as the two teams exchanged long rallies that saw plenty of hard spikes and incredible digs.
While Watford City took the first game with a comfortable, 25-14, margin, that would not be the case in the remainder of the evening’s games.
The Wolves found themselves trailing the Crusaders late in the second game before Bailee Garmann served a couple of aces to give Watford City a 26-24 win.
But the Crusaders weren’t ready to pack up their bags yet as Trinity Christian jumped out to a quick lead in the third game and used their momentum to cruise to a 25-18 win.
The Wolves then got their game back on track in the fourth game and edged the Crusaders, 25-20, to secure the District 15 championship crown.
“We knew going into the championship game with Trinity Christian that Sarah Telehey and Alycia McGothlin were big hitters at the net and back row attackers,” stated Deutsch. “They also like to mix it up with tips to the corner right next to the net, while our blockers would be up for their hits.”
And Deutsch and the Wolves were prepared for whatever the Crusaders threw at them.
Amanda Mogen, who was named the District 15 Senior Athlete of the Year, seemed to be everywhere on the court as she led the Wolves with 16 kills and 20 digs.
“We played well as a team and focused for the whole match,” stated Deutsch. “Everyone stepped up their play for the championship game.”
 Individual statistics for Watford City from the match were as follows:
Service Aces: Kara Langerud, 3; Tessa Dwyer, 2; Bailee Garmann, 1.
Kills: Amanda Mogen, 16; Ricki Lindley, 13; Dwyer, 7;  Langerud, 4; Tori Hopkins, 2; Jordan Sparby, 2.
Assists: Hopkins, 27; Tarynn Jacobson, 9; Lea Arndt, 1.
Blocks: Lindley, 1.
Digs: Mogen, 20; Langerud, 19; Jacobson, 17; Hopkins, 11; Dwyer, 10; Garmann, 6; Lindley, 3.

WATFORD CITY WEATHER