Volleyball: Wolverines’ talented youth on full display in season opener win over the Bulldogs

NEWBERRY — The 2023 volleyball season is officially here! Whitmire traveled to Newberry High School to kick off the new season on Aug.22 at 5:30 p.m. and both teams did not disappoint. The lady Wolverines took down the lady Bulldogs in four sets to win the match 3-1 and get off to a good start in the new year.

The young and talented roster of the lady Wolverines got off to a rocky start in the first set. They quickly fell behind early in the set and faced a 5-0 deficit. The young talent looked a bit overwhelmed and made a few self-inflicted errors on bad serves to help build momentum for the lady Bulldogs. The lady Wolverines lost the first set 25-13 and had to quickly regroup before the second set.

“Basically, I told them to settle down.We are very young, I had an eighth grader out there and three ninth graders. It was basically settle down and play your game.” said head coach Andy Bowers.”We knew Newberry was going to be very good and well coached. We just had to settle down and I think it was first game jitters.”

The lady Wolverines bounced back to take the second set 25-19.

The lady Bulldogs showed fight in the third set and pushed the young Wolverines to the brink. It was back-and-forth all set and both teams were tied at 22. The lady Wolverines locked in and closed out the set by forcing the Bulldogs to make two costly mistakes with their flawless execution. Then, they dominated the fourth set with 25-17 score to win the match. It was a total team effort for the lady Wolverines, but Bonnie Evans, outside hitter, carried the young squad. She played every match point in every set and flexed her athleticism on the defense.

“Well, like I said I have a lot of ninth graders on this team and an eighth grader. I have basically three seniors, but got one that really plays a lot and one junior………This was big for us. Newberry is always good and we play each other well. It’s great competition and this is a big win for us. I think it’s something for my young ladies to grow on,” said Bowers.

The lady Wolverines will have a week off and will return home to face Newberry again in their second match-up of the season. The lady Bulldogs will face Fairfield Central at home on Aug.29 for their second match-up of the season.