NUC not too much trouble for JV girls

Above: Chloe Anderson on the hit. Covering are Maya Lassiter, Jocelyn Bartell and Jersie Kelley.

Visiting New Ulm Cathedral didn’t give the junior varsity girls much trouble on Thursday in the season opener.

The Clippers won 2-0.

“They were consistent,” said coach Bree Meyer. “It’s always hard the first game because it’s quite since school hasn’t started yet. I think they were a little nervous, but we had a scrimmage on Tuesday, and they all got lots of playing time, so that helped.”

Lacey McCabe’s ace tip was the first point of game one, and the Clippers never looked back. With kills by McCabe, Jocelyn Bartell and Chloe Anderson, they were up 15-3 before knocking a serve into the net.

With the Clippers up 16-8, Cathedral had trouble keeping the ball inbounds down the stretch. Sophie Perkins dropped a tip to the floor for the last Clipper winner, and they won 25-9 when the Greyhounds hit the ball into the webbing.

Jersey Kelley’s kill and ace serve were the Clipper winners early in game two for a 6-4 advantage. Bartell served up an ace and slanted two kills after that, the second from the back row. Anderson attacked for a point, and Maya Lassiter dropped a tip into vacant real estate to put the Clippers up 11-7.

With the net and boundary lines giving NUC more trouble, the Clippers went up comfortably 18-7, but Cathedral took eight of the next nine points with most of them coming on winners and the rest on a trio of Clipper hits out of bounds.

Lassiter’s ace tip was the last winner for the Clippers, and the game ended 25-19 when Cathedral got caught in the net.

Anderson led the attack squad with four kills. McCabe had three kills, and Kelley had one kill. Perkins pushed up seven set assists. Bartell had three digs.

Upstairs earlier, the B-squad, also coached by Meyer and made up of some of the JV players, lost 2-1 to St. Peter.

The JV girls are back in action on Tuesday when they take on host JWP.