On Saturday, September 13, the Onaga High School volleyball team went to Frankfort for their annual invitational tournament. The Buffaloes entered 4-2 on the season, but came out of the day 8-3 and champions of the meet.
The tournament opened with a match versus the host Wildcats. Onaga came out sharp, taking a 2–0 victory to start the day on a high note. They knocked off Frankfort in dominate fashion, winning 25-16, 25-15. Senior Lauryn Marten led the attack with 8 kills in the match, while fellow seniors Natalie Boswell and Lillie Weiser added 6 and 5, respectively.
Abbie Ringel led the way from the serving line. The senior had 3 aces in the contest, while the team scored 9 points with her serving. Junior Willow Hochstedler led the team with 9 digs, while Ringel had a team-leading 22 assists.
Next came a match against Cair Paravel, and Onaga delivered a convincing 2–0 sweep yet again. Onaga was able to control momentum, especially in late phases of both sets, and finished with scores of 25–20, 26–24 in favor of the Buffaloes. Onaga had 28 kills in the contest with Marten leading the team once again with 10. She also had two aces in the match, with Boswell recording two as well.
Defensively the Buffaloes were sharp, recording 32 digs in the contest with no errors. Boswell led the team with 9, while senior libero Addison DeChant recorded 7. Ringel added 3 blocks in the match, while Weiser added 2 more.
After the lunch break, fatigue might have been creeping in, but Onaga held strong in a tightly contested match against Jackson Heights. The Buffaloes dropped the first set 22-25, but emerged with a 2–1 win with scores of 25–17 and 25–20 in the final two.
Offensively, Onaga managed 25 kills over 3 sets. Marten and Boswell led the offensive attack with each having a team-leading 7. They also each had 2 aces again as well to give the Buffaloes 4 for the contest.
Defensively, Ringel and Wesier each had 4 total blocks as well, while Boswell and junior MaKenzie Dorsey added one a piece. Boswell was a do-it-all player for the Buffaloes throughout the match, as she also led the team with 11 digs. Hochstedler was right behind her with 10.
The fourth match of the day was certainly the most nerve-racking. Onaga pulled off a nail-biter in the first set 26-24, but then lost the second one 22-25. The third match was another back-and-forth affair, but the Buffaloes pulled out a 25-23 win to improve to 4-0 on the day. The win also sealed a championship in the invitational and sent the girls home with some hardware.
The offensive attack started at the serving line, where the Buffaloes recorded 10 in the match. Marten led the team with 4, while Ringel and sophomore Avery Boswell each added 2. Marten also recorded a team-leading 10 kills in the contest, while Weiser and the elder Boswell each added 8.
Defensively, Avery Boswell led the team with an individual season-high 14 digs. Her sister Natalie had 12, and Hochstelder also reached double-digits with 10. The team also recorded 5 bocks in the contest, with all 5 coming from different players.
With the championship already wrapped up, the Buffaloes came out sluggish in the final match of the day. Entering 4-0 on the day and playing Valley Falls, who was 0-4 in the tournament to that point, a clean sweep for the day seemed inevitable. That didn't change after the first set, as Onaga dominated with a double-digit, 25-15 win.
That was the end of the celebrating though, as the Buffaloes dropped the next two matches 21-25, 21-23, and ended their six-game winning streak along the way.
Natalie Boswell led the team with 11 kills, while Ringel recorded 22 assists on the offensive side. DeChant also recorded a team-leading 6 aces in the contest, a season high for the senior.
Though the day ended in defeat, the volleyball team made a statement on Saturday. They improved their record to 8-3 overall, and head into the back half of their regular season having won 6 of their last 7 games.
The wins over the weekend landed the team on the KVA State Rankings for 1A-DI, where they were ranked #7. Also, with her performance over the course of the day, senior Lauryn Marten was named the MSC Sports "Athlete of the Week."
The team is next in action on Tuesday when they head to Doniphan West for a triangular with the Mustangs and Linn.