The Fort Calhoun High School volleyball team did not go one-and-done.
Days after breaking a month-long losing streak in their regular season finale, the Pioneers picked up a postseason victory against Louisville during the Class C1 Subdistrict 2 Tournament at Omaha Concordia. It was their 10th and final win of the fall as the host Mustangs eliminated FCHS 24 hours later, Tuesday.
Coach Liz Sevcik said her staff challenged the Calhoun players down the final stretch of their season.
“They wanted to put in the work,” she said Monday after the 3-0 sweep of the Lions. “They dug in and worked hard earning the win against Logan View/Scribner-Snyder, and that energy and hard work carried into tonight as well.”
Against Concordia, though, the ninth-ranked Mustangs were a bit too much for the Pioneers. They won 3-0, claiming sets of 25-18, 25-18 and 25-15.
FCHS started the match, however, with a lead. Sophie Weeks' first serve ended in an ace before Emilee Thayer-Mencke notched a kill just inside the back line for a 5-3 advantage.
From there, though, Concordia went on a 9-0 scoring streak, taking control of the set. The Mustangs led the second race to 25 from the start, too, though the Pioneers did force a late home team timeout when it pulled within 21-18.
Concordia hit the ball long first at 21-16 before back-to-back Thayer-Mencke kills cut into Calhoun's deficit. The Mustangs regrouped after the timeout, though, and scored four-straight points for a 2-0 advantage.
Still, the Pioneers fought back. With Weeks serving, they got off to another 2-0 start. Thayer-Mencke's swing made it 7-4, too, before Concordia — for the third consecutive set — took control again.
Fort Calhoun senior Taylor Stewart notched her team's final point at 24-15, staving off match point for at least one more serve. The 12th-grader spiked the ball to the floor just inside the back line, capping she and fellow varsity senior Jordan Faucher's FCHS careers.
“Over the last couple of games and practices, I think that we learned we have so much more in us,” Coach Sevcik said. “That comes out when we are giving full effort all the time and communicating.”
The Pioneers truly righted themselves down the stretch in the coach's eyes.
“I'm proud of them for digging in and working harder to finish the season with these last couple of wins,” she said. “I think we've been able to end the season with a good road map of how to build from here.”
Pioneers beat Lions
A day earlier, FCHS earned its sweep of Louisville 25-15, 25-22 and 25-22.
The Lions had knocked off the Pioneers in their previous three meetings this season, taking seven of nine sets, but couldn't find a way to take momentum from Coach Sevcik's team in postseason play.
“We have worked a lot these last couple of weeks on having a next-ball mentality and not letting our effort level drop,” the coach said. “That helped us battle through even when it got tough and we were down in the points column for a few stretches.”
FCHS won the opening set convincingly with Thayer-Mencke going on a serving streak of aces to build energy. It won by 10 before claiming the second set by three on an ace serve by Weeks.
“Sophie's another one,” Sevcik said. “Consistent, tough server, plays good defense and always works hard to get the set to our hitters.”
The Pioneers won again by a 25-22 score in the third when Louisville hit the ball out of bounds at the end of the match.
Sevcik said Claire Pearson was another player who shined against the Lions.
“Claire has really stepped up into her role on the court,” the coach explained. “She's a go-getter, and is always giving us her best effort and trying to get better. She had some great serves and passes especially and was controlled as a hitter.”
Altogether, though, Fort Calhoun's 10th and final win of the fall season was a team effort.
“Everyone showed up to play tonight and contributed in a big way to the sweep,” Sevcik said.
FCHS VOLLEYBALL LINE SCORES
Tuesday
No. 9 Omaha Concordia 3, Fort Calhoun 0
FCHS (10-19) 18 18 15 — 0
OC (23-13) 25 25 25 — 3
Monday
Fort Calhoun 3, Louisville 0
FCHS (10-18) 25 25 25 — 3
LHS (13-16) 15 22 22 — 0
