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Sports

West Sweeps East for Big Pre-District Win

Fort Zumwalt West defeated Fort Zumwalt East 2-0 on the volleyball court on Tuesday.

It always pays to peak right before the post-season.  

Such is the case with the Jaguars volleyball team. West (16-12) defeated the Lions 2-0 tonight in a non-conference contest at Zumwalt East.  The Lions drop to 20-7 with the loss. 

“This is huge, to beat another Zumwalt school,” Jaguar coach Jill Plassmeyer said. “We just had our district seed meeting last night and they were seeded ahead of us in the fourth spot. Winning creates a lot of confidence because we’ll play them again in districts.”  

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The Jaguars and the Lions are scheduled to meet in the first round of the District 4 Tournament on Oct. 24 at High School. Plassmeyer felt her team’s communication and blocking made a difference. 

“Everyone on the team has a role to play,” she said. “The passers set up the pass and the setters have to set. I thought we did well defensively, on blocking, tonight. The front row did very well. It was an all-around team effort.”

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The Lions established a 2-0 lead in the first game, but Chelsey Jackson’s kill ended the short East run. With Arianna Linnenbrink serving, the Jaguars put together a three point run to establish a 5-3 lead.

East continued to stay in the contest and Brandy Young’s kill made the score 7-6 West. Alison Trost then came up to serve. Trost went on a a three-point serving run and gave the Lions an 8-7 advantage, but East couldn’t sustain the momentum. 

A two-point Jaguar run gave West a 10-8 lead. West would never lose the lead and would go on to win the first game 25-19. 

West had just one serving error in the entire match.

 “We’ve been up and down in serving all year, but tonight serving was a huge part of our win,” Plassmeyer said. “They missed some serves in some crucial points in the game that helped us out.”  

Like in the first game, the Lions would establish an early lead, as they went up 3-0. West would fight back and the evenly-matched game. The game was tied up at five, eight, 11, 12 and 16 points.

With Jordan Duran serving, the Jaguars put together a two-point run to lead 18-16. West never lost the lead and won the second game 25-19.  

“Our blocking was ineffective and we didn’t play Fort Zumwalt East Volleyball tonight,” East coach Michael Loyd said. “We didn’t communicate and we weren’t trusting each other. We didn’t play the games we know how to play. We had the jitters because it was senior night.”   

The Lions' seniors, Young, Courtney Staten, and Michaela Kline, were honored in a ceremony before the game.

Loyd agreed with Plassmeyer on the effectiveness of the Jaguars serving. 

“They had some very powerful serving tonight,” he said. “Jordan Duran had an amazing full serve and we weren’t ready to pass that ball, unfortunately. But we’ll meet them again on Monday and we’ll be ready to rock and roll.”  

The Lions have one regular season contest left before the post-season. East will play Duchesne at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Duchesne. 

PHOTO CAPTION 1: (001): 

 

PHOTO CAPTION 2: (007): 

 

PHOTO CAPTION 3: (008): The Fort Zumwalt East volleyball team warms up before playing Fort Zumwalt West. 

 

PHOTO CAPTION 4: (011): Fort Zumwalt West Volleyball coach Jill Plassmeyer (center) talks with her team before taking on Fort Zumwalt East. 

 

PHOTO CAPTION 5: (014): The Fort Zumwalt West Jaguars and the Fort Zumwalt East Lions square off this week. 

 

PHOTO CAPTION 6: (017): Fort Zumwalt West’s Arianna Linnenbrink serving in a contest against Fort Zumwalt East this week. 

 

PHOTO CAPTION 7: (018): Fort Zumwalt East’s Brandy Young serves in a contest against Fort Zumwalt West this week.  

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