Looking ahead: Highland volleyball

RIVERSIDE — The 2021 Highland volleyball season certainly had its ups and downs. The Huskies finished above .500 in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division but just shy of that mark overall.

Highland went 11-15 on the year, finishing 5-3 in the North to take fourth place, finishing behind Wapello, Winfield-Mount Union and Mediapolis in the conference standings. It was an improvement of three spots from the previous year’s squad, which finished 2-5 in league play and wound up in seventh.

The Huskies will lose a good amount of talent in 2022. Highland loses two of its Top-3 hitters in Jalynn Brown (89 kills) and Carson Mellinger (65 kills), as well as top defensive specialist Mackinze Hora (333 digs).

The Highland offense should still have some kick, as five of the Top-7 hitters last season were juniors or younger. Junior-to-be Sarah Burton led the squad with 150 kills last season. Classmate Payton Brun finished the year with 31.

Burton was also one of the top defensive players on the team. She finished with 306 digs and led the team with 20 blocks.

The Huskies begin the 2022 season at Keota. The team’s first SEISC North contest takes place on Sept. 1, against Pekin.

The Huskies will take part in a handful of tournaments this year, including one in mid-September at Cardinal, and October dates at New London and Washington.

2022 Highland volleyball schedule

Aug. 22 at Keota

Aug. 25 vs. Danville

Sept. 1 vs. Pekin

Sept. 6 at Wapello

Sept. 8 vs. Winfield-Mt. Union

Sept. 13 at Columbus

Sept. 17 at Cardinal Tournament

Sept. 22 Conference Tournament — TBA

Sept. 24 at Conference Tournament- Southeastern Community College

Sept. 29 vs. Hillcrest Academy

Oct. 1 at New London Tournament

Oct. 4 at Lone Tree

Oct. 6 vs. Louisa-Muscatine

Oct. 8 at Washington Tournament

Oct. 11 at WACO