Bloodhounds sweep Demons

Coming off a conference win in Keokuk last week, the Washington volleyball team hoped to carry that momentum into Tuesday night?s match against Fort Madison.

However, the Bloodhounds, who carried their own momentum into the match, wouldn?t let Washington get into a groove, and ran away with the match, claiming the victory in straight sets with wins of 25-15, 25-10 and 25-17.

After the match, Washington head coach Julianna Berg said that a bad communication night led to the Demons? struggles.

?It was very out of character for our girls,? Berg said. ?I don?t always have a good answer for why this happens, but it was just an off night for our girls, so I?ll tell them that we just have to focus extra and grind through. They aren?t going to stop the game for us.?

The loss drops Washington to 4-14 on the season and 1-2 in conference play, while Fort Madison improves to 3-0 in Southeast Conference action with the victory.

In the first set, the Demons and Bloodhounds traded points until Fort Madison went on an 8-2 run to take a 12-6 lead. The Bloodhounds continued to extend the lead to as much as 11 before claiming the 25-15 set victory.

The second set was a struggle for the Demons, who kept it tied at the 5-all mark, before a 14-1 run by the Bloodhounds helped them cruise to a 25-10 victory.

?The biggest takeaway for us is that we have to play with a high energy level,? Berg said. ?That?s what I told them in timeouts. All I want them to do is come out and play with energy. I?m not asking them to have huge swings or kill the ball every time, and you can tell there?s a huge correlation between having energy and playing well.?

In the third set, the energy level seemed to improve for the Demons with them taking their first lead all match at 3-2. After that, the Bloodhounds retook the lead and used another big run (this time a 6-1 run) to extend the lead, and capped off the match by winning six of the final eight points to claim the match 25-17.

Washington was led by senior Amber Salow and junior Liv Postl?s five kills, on the night. Postl was one of the biggest bright spots for the Demons according to Berg, as she was successful on all but four of her attack attempts on the night.

?You can always count on Liv to be a spark plug,? Berg said. ?She?s always calling for the ball and screaming for it. She wants to hit the ball and when she connects with it, great things happen. I?m pleased with how she?s stepping up in the middle of the season here.?

Defensively, the Demons were led by Morgan Kimball?s three digs, while Kimball also connected on all eight of her serving attempts to lead the team.

Washington will prepare for a tournament on Saturday at Mid-Prairie, which begins at 9 a.m.