No. 2 (3A) Mount Vernon volleyball continues to pile up the wins.
This week they won a Senior Night battle against Independence 25-13, 25-14, 25-19 and then took the title at the Waverly-Shell Rock Tournament, going 5-0.
Against those “other” Mustangs, the Mount Vernon Mustangs were relentless at the net, attacking at a .425 efficiency.
“Independence was really scrappy,” Mount Vernon Coach Maggie Willems said. “Thankfully we stayed steady and executed against them.”
Junior Chloe Meester led in kills with 20. Junior Paige Schurbon and senior Brooke Ellyson each added seven kills.
Ellyson had 22 assists and Schurbon had 12. MV only had seven errors over three sets.
Junior Jaden Rolland led with 17 digs. Ellyson added 10 and Meester eight.
“It was a nice opportunity to play our seniors, and to have them play well,” Willems said. “They have given all their years and time to our program.”
In Waverly, it was another murders’ row of ranked teams.
Mount Vernon beat No. 7 (1A) AGWSR 21-7, 21-12; No. 4 (4A) Cedar Rapids Xavier 20-22, 21-19, 17-15; No. 6 (3A) New Hampton 21-15, 21-16; and Nevada 21-18, 19-21, 15-11, in pool play. Then topped Iowa City Liberty, 25-20, 25-22 in the championship.
“That was a really tough day,” Willems said. “I was really impressed with our resilience. We hung in there with strong teams.”
The win over the Saints showed some real grit, and the Mustangs won the third set 17-15.
“Match point was an ace serve by Addison Gookin, right on the baseline,” Willems said. “That was an exciting way to end the match.”
The Mustangs (24-2) have another gauntlet of ranked teams this week. They played at No. 8 (4A) Marion on Tuesday, Oct. 3. On Saturday they travel to the loaded Westside Invitational at Cedar Rapids Jefferson. In a 16-team field, Mount Vernon may again run into Dike-New Hartford – the only team to beat them this season.
“Our kids understand how good Dike is,” Willems said. “But the kids are not afraid of them.”
Mustangs win title at WSR
October 5, 2023
About the Contributor
Ryan Suchomel, Sports Reporter
Ryan Suchomel is a sports reporter for the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.