Lady Wolves Defeat Poplar For Senior Night

The Wolf Point Wolves celebrated their volleyball senior night in a big way as they downed rival Poplar in a match that went four sets on Thursday, Oct. 16.

The Wolves emerged with a 25-6, 25-27, 25-13, 25-20 victory over the Indians.

Thanks to the powerful serving of senior Riley Schwarzrock, the Wolves jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the opening set. After a kill by Poplar’s Braelyn Nordwick, Wolf Point gained a 12-2 lead on a serve by McKinlee Paulson and a hit by Anna Matejovsky.

Kills by Lauren Rodenberg and Adalynn Smith along with an ace by Maia Kent put the margin at 17-4. Wolf Point increased the gap to 20-4 on net winners by Marley Moran and Paulson.

Ahead by a 21-6 margin, the Wolves closed out the set on a block and kill by Rodenberg and a pair of aces by Moran.

In the second set, a kill by Lilliana O’Neal put Poplar ahead by a 20-16 advantage. Wolf Point then tallied the next six points including two kills each by Rodenberg and Smith to grab a 22-20 lead.

The Indians pulled even on a tip by Jayda Falcon and an ace by O’Neal. The Wolves responded with a kill by Rodenberg and an ace by Moran for a 24-22 advantage, but Poplar moved ahead 25-24 on a kill by Nordwick and an ace by Toni Brown. With the Indians leading 26-25, Poplar took the second set on an ace by Frankie Gourneau.

The net play of Ma’Kenzie Jackson, Rodenberg and Smith led the Wolves to a 16-5 cushion in the third set. After Poplar scored on a kill by Sophia Crawford, the Wolves increased the gap to 21-7 on three aces by Moran and two kills by Smith.

Poplar was able to fight back as close as 24-13 on aces by Brown and a spike by Nordwick, but Wolf Point won the set’s final point on a kill by Jackson.

The ace serving of Maia Kent helped the Wolves earn a 16-10 advantage in the fourth set. A spike by Smith and ace by Moran put the margin at 20-12.

Kills by Poplar’s Nordwick and Carsyn Fourbear pulled the Indians as close as 23-20 before Wolf Point struck for the last two points.

Both squads opened the week with losses against strong teams. Wolf Point lost at Scobey by a 6-25, 12-25, 5-25, final. Poplar fell at home against Glasgow by an 8-25, 21-25, 8-25, margin.