Hailey spikers make quick work of Minico
Three-game victory in season debut
Rachael Richards, Wood River senior captain, hammers a winner during Saturday?s 25-21, 25-12, 25-14 over the Minico Spartans in Hailey. Leah McIlhenny looks on. Photo by David N. Seelig
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Serving consistently and limiting its mistakes, the Wood River High School volleyball team posted its first Great Basin Conference West league victory Saturday 25-21, 25-12, 25-14 over the Minico Spartans in Hailey.
Coach Tim Richards? Wolverines (1-0, 1-0 league) broke away from the winless Spartans (0-3, 0-1) after a 20-20 tie in the first game, then built healthy leads of 19-4 and 20-11 in the final two games before nailing it down.
Wood River won the long points and didn?t hurt itself, while the Spartans were frustrated by long hits that went out-of-bounds and mistakes that handed the host Wolverines some easy points. Still, Minico showed plenty of potential, coach Richards said.
?Minico has a nice, big middle and will get better as the season goes long. They have some good servers, too,? said Richards.
He added about his own team, ?We passed well and served well. We haven?t really played much together, but we got to feeling out for each other and starting to build that trust.?
It?s always important to get the first game, and sophomore Leah McIlhenny helped the Hailey cause with a couple of service winners at 21-20 and an incredible dig?stopping a hard Spartans spike with her body as the ball bounced back and landed good.
Syringa Stark?s kill finished the first game at 25-21, Wood River.
In the second game, junior Jackie Safran?s serving ability in tennis made a successful switch to volleyball and she dished out 11 consecutive winners helping Wood River to a 19-4 lead. Safran is a reigning Idaho state champion in girls? doubles in tennis.
The third game was a lot closer, but Wood River started its surge on a pair of Stark blocks for a 14-9 lead. Then Hannah Richards scored a kill on a long point, Stark hammered one down, from Rachael Richards, and Stark served an ace for a 19-11 lead.
Also contributing to the tidy Wood River triumph were Jamie Stone, Ryann Menges and Elissa Baker.
Wood River stats against Minico:
Kills?Stark 5, Stone 3, Menges 3.
Blocks?Rachael Richards 4, Stark 2.
Assists?Hannah Richards 8, Stark 3, McIlhenny 3.
Serves?Menges 14, Stone 11, Safran 11, McIlhenny 10, Stark 10, Rachael Richards 10, Hannah Richards 7.
Wood River traveled to Jerome Tuesday for a triangular meet with the host Tigers and Minico, and then goes to Twin Falls Thursday for a tri with the Bruins and Pocatello.
