No nail-biting moments for the Lee’s Summit West volleyball team. Not even when a set suddenly gets a little tight.
The Titans stood two points away from match point in the second set Tuesday night against Lee’s Summit North when the Broncos started clawing back. North closed within two points, but the Titans stayed calm, cool and collected and hung on for a 25-22 victory to complete a 2-0 sweep in a Suburban Gold Conference match at North.
“It wasn’t really nerve-wracking at all,” West senior Baylie Andersen said. “We’ve played a lot of tight matches but we have a ton of confidence in each other. When it comes down to the last couple of points we really feel we can put it away no matter what.”
West, which dispatched the Broncos 25-13 in the first set, had a 23-17 lead in the second set before the Broncos staged their comeback. A kill by Ryanne Mansell started a 5-1 run that ended with a kill off a block by Kayler Smith that pulled North within 24-22 before West could get that final point.
With all but three players back from last season, it’s easy for the Titans to get that been-there, done-that frame of mind. It’s something coach Jennifer Morgan has come to expect from her team.
“That’s what I try to instill in them,” Morgan said. “It’s a game; you just work as hard as you can. And if you work as hard as you can, I’m happy.”
Morgan wasn’t too happy with the way the second set started. North raced out to a 6-0 lead, with shots from Smith accounting for three of those points. From there the Titans had to chip away before taking a 15-14 lead on a cross-court kill from Erin Waltz.
“I think we maybe got a little excited about the first game and came out a little slow and they came out a little stronger,” Andersen said. “It took us a little bit to get back in our groove.”
Waltz, who had a team-high seven kills for West along with Odyssey Warren, started a 5-0 run with a kill after North forged a 15-15 tie. Andersen ended the run with a shot at the net, and the Titans upped their lead to six before North stormed back.
“We did a good job serving and coming back from that,” North coach Shelby Hoffman said. “Our front row stayed aggressive and disciplined along the net. And that’s all I can ask for.”
West took the suspense out of the first set early with a 7-0 run after a 4-4 tie. The run included kills from all the Titans weapons, including Warren and Bella Baker, who finished with four kills.
North cut the lead to 11-9, but the Titans put it away with an 8-0 run that had three kills by Warren.
“It’s nice that we have some go-to’s,” Morgan said of the Titans’ multi-pronged attack. “We can focus more on our passing and get our middles more involved, but that will come.”
Mansell had seven kills to lead North, which was still looking for its first win of the season before playing Thursday at Blue Springs. Smith, Cori Corrado and Mallory Meers had three kills each.
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