Highland sweeps Columbus

If Tuesday night?s match against Columbus is any indication, the Highland volleyball team is gearing up for a postseason run in a week and a half.

The Huskies improved to 18-10 on the season with a three-game sweep (25-11, 25-18, 25-10) over the Wildcats who fell to 6-20 on the season.

?This year is the best team I?ve had for (scrappy) play,? Highland head coach Christine Rath said. ?We?ve had our moments where we play other teams? games, but this group trusts each other and we have less conflict than we?ve had in the past.?

The Huskies were led by senior Briana Davis, who notched 12 kills in the match, while senior Jenna Dresselhaus had a team-high 13 assists on the night.

Highland started off quickly in the match, jumping out to an 8-3 lead and keeping their foot on the pedal the rest of the set. Columbus fell behind 17-8, but claimed back-to-back points after a timeout, before Highland claimed eight of the next nine points to take the set.

In the second set, it seemed as if a new Columbus team was on the court, as they took and held onto the early lead. Columbus led 12-10 before Highland called a timeout, but after that, it was all Huskies. Highland outscored the Wildcats 15-6 after the timeout, and claimed the second set.

?We had to play our game and we gave them everything,? Rath said. ?We had to mix things up and get some new players in there. We got rid of some of our errors.?

The Huskies left no doubt in the third set, cruising to a 25-10 victory, which saw them close the set with a 9-1 run.

Highland will see Columbus one more time this year, as the teams will meet in first-round regional action, played at Highland on Oct. 20, but despite posting a 3-0 record (7-0 in sets), the Huskies won?t look past their conference opponent.

?Columbus is a scrappy team, and we need to start putting the ball down,? Rath said. ?Once we put the ball down, we have more of an advantage. If we can do that, we?ll have success.?

Highland will host Mediapolis on Thursday, while Columbus will travel to face IMS.