The Heritage High School volleyball winning streak reached eight matches in a row after back-to-back wins to start the week.

On Monday (Sept. 27), the Hawks won at home, 25-17, 27-25 over Tuscola.

To secure the two-set sweep, Heritage needed to recover from a 24-17 second-set deficit.

“We pulled off a 10-1 run to win,” Heritage coach Ryan Fitzgerald said. “I feel like every year I have been at Heritage, we have at least one match with a run like this.

“I was proud of our never-say-die mentality and it paid off big-time.”

Bri Struck pounded 13 kills to go with nine digs. Bryn Wyant had three kills and three digs, plus one service ace.

Mary Roland distributed 27 assists.

On Tuesday (Sept. 28) at Villa Grove, Heritage collected a 25-15, 25-15 victory.

Struck totaled 15 kills and five aces while Roland collected 23 assists.

Torie Rothermel added four kills, two digs and two service aces.

Heritage (14-6-1) returns to action on Thursday (Sept. 30) at home against Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond.

The post Hawks on eight-match win streak first appeared on SJO Daily.

With multiple players providing key contributions, the Heritage Hawks registered a two-set volleyball sweep on Monday (Sept. 20) at Chrisman.

Bri Struck pounded 16 kills and teammates Kiley Knoll and Torie Rothermel each landed five kills as the Hawks dispatched Chrisman, 25-11, 25-22.

Knoll and Lilli Montgomery each contributed six digs. Mary Roland doled out 28 assists to go with three digs.

Struck added five digs, Rothermel had two blocks and Knoll served two aces. Montgomery had three assists.

On Tuesday (Sept. 21), the Hawks swept Cerro Gordo/Bement in Bement, 25-23, 25-14 with a double-double by Struck spearheading the attack.

Struck landed 12 kills to go with 10 digs. Adena Paul chipped in with five blocks and two service aces.

Heritage (8-6-1) returns to action on Thursday (Sept. 23) at home against Okaw Valley. Seven of the Hawks’ wins have been in two-set sweeps.

The post Hawks defeat Chrisman volleyball in two sets first appeared on SJO Daily.

The Heritage Hawks had Toledo Cumberland on the ropes on Thursday (Sept. 16), but couldn’t secure the volleyball win, suffering a 23-25, 25-21 25-21 setback at home.

Bri Struck collected a double-double for Heritage with 14 kills and 17 digs. She also had four blocks and two assists.

Mary Roland dished out 27 assists to go with five digs.

Kiley Knoll contributed seven kills, 11 digs, five service aces and three blocks. Adena Paul added five kills, two blocks and one ace.

“Tonight was a good learning experience,” Heritage coach Ryan Fitzgerald said. “We had a lot of time to prep for Cumberland and I thought from the first point, up until we led 20-15 in the third set, we had executed really well.

“What doomed us tonight was our fear of losing overtook our desire to win the match. Hats off to Cumberland, they have a great team, but I feel like this was a game we should have won and would have been a great resume builder for the postseason because Cumberland now sits at 12-2.”

Heritage (6-6-1) returns to action on Monday (Sept. 20) at Chrisman.

The post Four Hawks help Heritage stick with Toledo Cumberland first appeared on SJO Daily.

Bri Struck hammered a season-high 20 kills on Thursday (Aug. 26), but Heritage dropped a 21-25, 25-18, 25-19 decision against Salt Fork in Catlin.

Struck also had nine digs and one block.

Mary Roland handed out 31 assists and Kiley Knoll collected 13 digs.

Heritage (1-2) returns to action on Tuesday (Aug. 31) at Oakwood.

Both of the Hawks’ losses have been in three-set matches.

“We just aren’t really clicking right away to start the season,” Heritage coach Ryan Fitzgerald said. “Better now than later, and these long challenging matchups are only going to help us come October. Hopefully, we can get something going soon because we just aren’t quite where we should be.”

The post Heritage volleyball looks to “get something going soon” first appeared on SJO Daily.

Heritage opened the volleyball season on Monday (Aug. 23) with a non-conference sweep at home over Paris.

The Hawks dispatched the visitors 27-25, 25-19.

Senior Bri Struck led Heritage with 11 kills. She also totaled five digs, two blocks and two aces.

Lily Ploense handed out 10 assists to go with three digs, and Lilli Montgomery contributed seven digs.

The win came in the first match for first-year head coach Ryan Fitzgerald.

“We had a little different lineup the first set due to some absences from practice,” Fitzgerald said. “Gracie Tate (freshman) and Destanee Morgan (sophomore) stepped in flawlessly to help us win the first set, while Lily Ploense also took on the setting role in that set and guided us to a stellar hitting percentage.”

On Wednesday (Aug. 25), Heritage lost a three-set slugfest at home against Armstrong-Potomac, 25-21, 16-25, 25-22.

Mary Roland handed out 30 assists and Struck pounded 19 kills. Kiley Knoll collected 12 digs, along with five kills. Struck also had seven digs.

The Hawks (1-1) return to action on Thursday (Aug 26) at Salt Fork. 

The post Heritage opens volleyball season with win over Paris first appeared on SJO Daily.