Mid-Prairie downs Demons in instant classic

WELLMAN - It was a great night for volleyball in front of a raucous crowd at Mid-Prairie Thursday.

The Golden Hawks downed Washington in four hotly-contested sets 3-1.

The Hawks took the opener 25-20, lost the set of the night 30-28, trailed the third set 15-9 before winning 25-19, then endured another momentum-swinging set to win the fourth set 29-27.

'I think in the past this team never knew how to finish, but we are starting a new culture here with our talent, our grit, our teamwork and all the energy we had to pull out this win,” first-year coach Sherry Evans said of her Hawks. 'It was nerve wracking, but I have confidence in these girls and I want them to go for it every time.”

Cassidy Hershberger went for it on her serve, rallying the Hawks when they trailed in the third set with seven straight points on her serve. She finished the night with nine aces and 10 kills.

'She is a great leader for this team,” Evans said. 'She was amazing in the front row, but when they figured her out everybody else stepped up.”

Hershberger said it was a match that produced a lot of adrenaline.

'We worked all summer on mental toughness so we just think in our minds we are going to get the next point,” she said. 'It was fun. When I served those in that third set, I was just focused on changing things. I would change spots, do a float serve, then a hard one. It worked.”

Washington never led in the second set until taking its first lead at 25-24. It was tied at 17, 18, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28. An Addison Six kill was the 29th point and a Mid-Prairie hitting error ended it.

'That was stressful,” Washington coach Lexa Mahr said. 'I just kept telling them to be consistent. Whatever we do, be consistent.”

The first set was obvious it was the Demons first match of the year while the Hawks already had a tourney title under their belt.

'Even though we lost the match, it was the best opening match in my four years here,” Mahr said. 'I almost view it as a win because there was so many positives.”

The Demons learned a lot about themselves and how productive the offseason was.

'It was great to see the things we have been working on carry us through,” Mahr said. 'We have a great team chemistry. Our communication was great. It all clicked at times.”

The Demons can only go up from here. Film will tell them what to work on.

'There were a couple things that didn't click,” Mahr said. 'Volleyball is a game of geometry and we need to practice that.”

The Demons had a lot of service errors that killed some momentum.

Washington plays in a tournament in Grinnell Saturday.

Mid-Prairie doesn't play until Sept. 12 at Iowa City Regina.