Huskies move on to semifinals

It was a quick night in Riverside on Tuesday night as the Highland volleyball team wasted no time in securing a spot in the regional semifinals.

Taking on a winless Louisa-Muscatine team, the Huskies cruised in straight sets over the Falcons, winning with set victories of 25-10, 25-13 and 25-14.

The victory was the 20th of the year for the Huskies, but despite taking on a winless team, Highland wasn?t taking this game lightly.

?This match was one of those you just didn?t know,? Highland head coach Christine Rath said. ?You come in and they haven?t won a game, and those are the teams that you play to their level or they play to our level. I?ve been nervous about what team was going to show up on our side, because we know that they are better (than their record shows). We were able to play our game.?

The team had a balanced effort on the court, picking up a team-high seven kills from freshman Ali Stokes, while senior Briana Davis and sophomore Bailey Harmston each had five kills apiece.

This is Highland?s second postseason victory of the year after defeating Columbus in straight sets a week ago, and the competition will stiffen on Friday night.

Columbus and Louisa-Muscatine finished the season with a combined record of 6-56, but the Huskies will now advance to face No. 4 ranked West Branch at the Bears? home gym. That will create challenges the Huskies haven?t had to face in a while.

?It?s great we got (wins), but (we) need to switch gears and produce some hard hitting against them,? Rath said. ?We are going to have to switch mentalities and realize that we are going to have things turn our heads and we need to react quicker.?

With such strong competition coming up, Rath noted that the team needs to make sure that they remain confident heading into the match.

?We are telling them to not count ourselves out yet,? Rath said. ?We did that against Mediapolis, and they were done before the match even started. We have the capability to play with them, but we won?t move on if we feel like we?ve lost.?

In the match against Louisa-Muscatine, Highland started off quickly, taking a 17-3 lead, before cruising to a 25-10 victory.

In Game 2, Highland took a 13-2 lead, before L-M took four of the next five points to make it 14-6. Highland held the Falcons at bay the rest of the set, cruising to the 25-13 set victory.

In the decisive game, Louisa-Muscatine started strong, not allowing Highland to hold a lead until 6-5. After that, the Huskies cruised, winning eight of the next 10 points to claim the set and the match.

?When we get those first two under us and they get a little relaxed in that third game,? Rath said, ?we just have to put it away. There are teams that can come right back at you, and we did that tonight.?

Highland?s 20th victory is the most they?ve had in more than five years, and they hope to keep things going in Friday?s regional semifinal. To keep advancing, Rath was specific as to what the team needs to work on.

?We need to react more to quick hits,? Rath said. ?The other team is going to hit hard at us, and we haven?t had that the last few weeks. We need consistent hard hits as a team, and we need to cover our hitters very well. If we are going to hit, they are going to come off blocks very well too.?

Highland?s match against West Branch will start at 7 p.m. on Friday, with the winner moving on to take on the winner of Durant and Wapello for a berth in the state tournament. That game will be Nov. 4 at Durant.