Calvary Lutheran volleyball sweeps Eugene on Senior Night

Between the first and second sets Tuesday night, Calvary Lutheran volleyball coach Nicole Murphy emphatically reminded her team not to have a letdown after having a strong opening set.

It would only be a slight letdown.

Calvary Lutheran clinched a 20-win season on Senior Night, sweeping the Eugene Lady Eagles 25-6, 25-17.

"After this past weekend, we talked about no roller coasters," Murphy said. "We were not as strong as we came on in the first game."

Calvary Lutheran cruised in the first set, scoring eight of the first nine points. Sarah Johnson had seven service points, while Grace Smith had six service points.

Murphy said her team was pretty close to being flawless in the first set.

"I was very pleased with the passing," she said. "We can hit the ball, but we've got to make sure we can pass consistently, from point zero to point 25."

The second set wasn't as smooth of a ride for the Lady Lions.

"The second game, there were just a few too many errors that I wasn't happy with," Murphy said. "It's something that we can work on. It's something that always comes when you beat a team by quite a bit in the first game."

It started off much like the first set, with Calvary Lutheran building a 7-1 lead.

Eugene, however, improved its performance on the volley. Rather than making errors at the end of lengthy volleys, as they often did in the first set, they were finishing them off for points in the second.

"I was impressed by how scrappy they were," Murphy said.

Calvary Lutheran had an answer for Eugene in the second set. Middle hitter Olivia Bexten collected eight of her match-high 10 kills, consistently coming up with big attacks on the left side of the net.

Prior to the varsity match, Bexten was one of four Calvary Lutheran seniors recognized, along with Smith, Kate Schlichting and Adi Schulte.

"I just wanted to play my best with my team, since this is my last time playing on the home court with them," Bexten said. "That was enough excitement for me."

Bexten was the Lady Lions' lone representative on the all-tournament team Saturday at the Ozark Grand Slam.

"This past weekend, she stepped up all the way around," Murphy said. "Her back row was consistent, her front row was consistent. That's something I look for in a senior, that's something I look for in a leader."

Calvary Lutheran led 20-11, but Eugene rallied to pull within six at 22-16.

Bexten came through with her 10th kill to stop the rally, and after a Eugene serve went into the net, Schlichting finished the match with a kill down the middle.

Abi Lagore had five kills for Calvary Lutheran, while Maddie Layson and Schlichting each had four. Smith had a team-high 22 assists, Schulte had 11 digs and Layson added 10 digs. Lagore also had three blocks.

Kaitlyn Blain led Eugene with four kills.

Murphy said she was pleased with her team's performance this past weekend in Ozark, considering the Lady Lions were playing against Missouri Class 4 and Arkansas Class 5A teams. They also played without middle hitter Jaelyn Engelbrecht, who suffered a left ankle injury last week.

Murphy is hopeful Engelbrecht will be ready in time for districts next week.

"I was very nervous going down to Ozark," Murphy said. "I even thought about not going. But we needed to work on the lineup that we are going to have to use the next two weeks in case Jaelyn can't come back.

"The way we played this weekend carried over into tonight."

From here on out, Calvary Lutheran will play only Class 1 opponents. This season, the Lady Lions are 5-0-2 against Class 1 teams following Tuesday's win.

Calvary Lutheran is the No. 1 seed in next week's Class 1 District 12 Tournament in Otterville, while Eugene (14-9-1) is the No. 2 seed.

"We're having a fan bus come down and we're having a bunch of our student section coming to cheer us on," Bexten said.

Calvary Lutheran (20-9-2) will play Thursday at Russellville, another district opponent. The JV match begins at 6 p.m., followed by the varsity match at 7 p.m.

"Our schedule this year has made me more than happy," Murphy said, "with who we've played, how we've improved and what I've seen from the girls."

In the JV match, Eugene defeated Calvary Lutheran 25-16, 18-25, 17-15.