Skyhawks Soar to Millard North Invite Title
OMAHA - For the second year in a row, Omaha Skutt left the Millard North Invitational as champions on Saturday, but it wasn't nearly as easy as the Skyhawks' 6-0 mark in the tournament might lead you to believe.
After defeating Millard South 25-16, 25-15 in the quarterfinals, the Skyhawks, 12-1 overall, needed a gutty 30-28, 27-25 win over Lincoln North Star in the semifinals just to have a chance to defend their title.
After controlling the first set of the championship match against Millard West, the Skyhawks found themselves down 5-2 early in the second set on an ace serve by the Wildcats' Sara Berger. A kill by Ashley Bush later increased the Millard West lead to 13-6 in the second set before Skutt started to scratch its way back.
A 5-2 run by Skutt - in which the Skyhawks got two kills and a block from McKenna Kirkpatrick and kills from both Brooke Heyne and Alyssa Woodman - cut the Millard West lead to 14-11. The Wildcats' lead was 17-13 when Skutt junior defensive specialist Nikki White stepped to the service line. Three aces from White and three kills by Heyne keyed a 9-point run for Skutt that allowed the Skyhawks to take a 22-17 lead.
Millard West freshman Carly Renken ended the run with a kill in the middle for the Wildcats and a hitting error on Skutt got Millard West, 7-3, within 22-19. Another Heyne kill and a pair of Millard West hitting errors, however, got Skutt its final three points and the tournament championship.
Millard West, after falling to Lincoln East on Friday in its first match of pool play, responded well by taking wins over Lincoln North Star and Millard South later on Friday. The Wildcats then knocked off Kearney 25-10, 25-12 in the quarterfinals today and avenged its loss to Lincoln East with a 25-14, 25-14 victory over the Spartans in the semifinals.
In the third-place match, Class A #8 Lincoln North Star defeated Lincoln East 25-18, 25-16.
Omaha Skutt def. Millard West 25-14, 25-20
Omaha Skutt (12-1) Ranked #1 in Class B
Brooke Heyne - 10 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 0 assists.
Lily Heyne - 3 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 0 assists
Alyssa Woodman - 8 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, o assists.
Nikki White - 0 kills, 3 aces, 0 blocks, o assists.
Sydney Arkfeld - 1 kill, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 0 assists.
Allison Schomers - 0 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 25 assists.
McKenna Kirkpatrick - 8 kills, 0 aces, 2 blocks, 0 assists.
Brooke Swain - 0 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 2 assists.
Team Totals – 30 kills, 3 aces, 2 blocks, 27 assists.
Millard West (7-3) Ranked #5 in Class A
Jaiden Centeno - 0 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 1 assist.
Jordan Daniels - 0 kills, 1 ace, 0 blocks, 0 assists.
Ashley Bush - 5 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, o assists.
Bridget Petersen - 3 kills, 1 ace, 0 blocks, 0 assists.
Emma Walker - 0 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 10 assists.
Hailey Petersen - 6 kills, 0 aces, 1 block, 0 assists.
Sara Berger - 0 kills, 1 ace, 0 blocks, 4 assists.
Carly Renken - 1 kill, 0 aces, 1 block, 0 assists.
Cassidy Loberg - 3 kills, 0 aces, 0 blocks, 0 assists.
Team Totals – 18 kills, 3 aces, 2 blocks, 15 assists.
