Big Competition at the Joust Starts Season Strong

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Last Saturday 23 teams fought to win the Joust, one of the top early season tournaments to play in. Not a single team made it through the tournament undefeated, even the event winners Neenah who dropped a match to Westosha in pool play.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Neenah conquered the tournament with their dynamic offense with six different hitters racking up kills. Senior <strong>Addie Barnes</strong> (Committed to Loyola University) brought home twelve kills. <strong>Raegan Obry</strong> (Class of 2019) had an impressive 0.5 hitting percentage. Senior libero <strong>Kayla Kraus</strong>, who will be playing with teammate Addie Barnes at Loyola next year, led the team in digs and received 25 serves with no errors. <strong>Tommy Albers</strong> (setter, Class of 2019) led the team in assists. This team is clearly dynamic and cohesive. Their win was a team effort with many players contributing across the board. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Arrowhead High School took second place in the tournament, losing to Neenah in three tight sets. Junior <strong>Aubrey Hamilton</strong>, committed to Notre Dame, led the team in both aces and kills and contributed a fair number of digs and serve received balls as well. She is a great player both offensively and defensively and was a great asset to her team throughout the tournament. Four year varsity setter and captain <strong>Emma Ruckstadter</strong> (Class of 2019) contributed 13 assists. Though Arrowhead truly fought through this match, they came up just short in the end. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Oconomowoc High School and East Troy High School each made it into the gold bracket but lost in the semi finals to Arrowhead and Neenah respectively. The East Troy Trojans but up a well fought battle against Neenah, but fell in two sets to the tournaments ultimate champions. Senior <strong>Brianna Scuric</strong> (Committed to Northern Illinois University) made a huge impact for the Trojans leading the team in kills and digs and also contributing with an ace and several service receptions. Fellow senior <strong>Mati Jakscht</strong> had 21 service receptions and 10 digs for the match. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Oconomowoc had a wide spread offense with six players contributing kills to the match. They dropped the match in two fairly tight sets. Junior powerhouse setter <strong>Tayler Alden</strong> (Committed to Northern Iowa) led the team in assists, digs, and kills. Fellow junior <strong>Caitlin Crawford</strong> also contributed a number of digs and service receptions. An up and coming freshman, <strong>Maleah Howe</strong>, received 14 serves with no errors. She also contributed two kills to the match. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">DSHA won the silver bracket, putting them at 5th place overall after a tough loss to Neenah in their crossover match to get into gold. Westosha, Waukesha West, and Burlington also joined them in the silver bracket.</span></p> <p>This tournament can be a great indicator for team's success throughout the season. There are some big teams to watch develop in the next few weeks. </p>