CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — Playing at home for the first time in 2023, the Carl Junction Bulldogs earned a straight-set victory over the visiting Joplin Eagles on Thursday night in an early-season prep volleyball clash.
However, don’t let the 3-0 score fool you. It was far from an easy night at the office for the Bulldogs, as each set could have gone either way.
In the end, Carl Junction made more winning plays in each set and the Bulldogs defeated the Eagles 26-24, 26-24, 25-22.
At the end of the hard-fought, well-played match, both head coaches were pleased with their respective team’s effort.
“I thought Joplin came out really aggressive early in the match,” Carl Junction coach Cheryl Sharples said. “Joplin did some really nice things. They have a really nice hitter (Bailey Owens) and we had some difficulty defending her at times. But I was really happy with my kids. They stayed with the process and did what we needed to do. It worked out for us.”
“I’m really proud of my team,” Joplin coach Staci Saunders said. “I feel like we stuck to our game plan and played well overall. But we just had too many silly mistakes. We knew (Karissa) Chase and (Kylie) Scott were going to be the players we needed to target, and Carl Junction’s girls really hustle and play hard. I thought we served well, but we had some occasional letdowns defensively. Overall, I thought our girls played tough and they played with heart. It was a great team effort.”
Carl Junction improved to 6-1 on the season.
“I’m really pleased with the start,” Sharples said. “We’ve got some inexperienced kids out there. They’re getting some really good experience early in the season and they’re doing some really good things for us.”
Senior outside hitter Kylie Scott led the Bulldogs with 16 kills, while senior outside hitter Aubreigh Fowler and junior right side hitter Karissa Chase contributed eight kills apiece. Junior middle hitter/outside hitter DeShaye Burge contributed seven kills.
For large parts of the night, Scott and Chase provided a solid 1-2 punch on opposite sides of the court for the Bulldogs.
“That’s a really great combination for us,” Sharples said. “They give us a lot of offense.”
Carl Junction senior setter Miya Carnes handed out 40 assists and also had eight digs and five aces. Senior defensive specialist Abigail Wilson and Fowler had nine digs apiece for the Bulldogs, while senior middle hitter Acadia Badgley had three aces and three digs.
The Bulldogs served 15 aces in the three sets, many coming at crucial times.
“We served really well,” Sharples said. “We’ve been serving well all year. Our game plan is to serve aggressively and stay in-system and give ourselves a chance.”
Senior outside hitter Bailey Owens led the Eagles (1-1) with 16 kills and three blocks.
“Bailey had a great game and she did everything she could out there tonight,” Saunders said.
Joplin junior setter Adalynn Noirfalise compiled 30 assists and 11 digs, while junior libero Phia Vogel recorded 11 digs.
“I thought Phia was all over the place and she did a great job,” Saunders said. “This is her first year playing libero. And of course, our setter drives the bus for us and she did a great job, too.”
Also for the Eagles, senior outside hitter Janiah Vaughn contributed four kills and five digs, senior outside hitter Raelin Calderon had three kills and three blocks, junior middle blocker Amy Kessler recorded six blocks and sophomore middle blocker Aubrey Strickland had three blocks.
Each of the three sets were close.
The opening set was deadlocked at five when the Eagles gained the momentum and used an 8-2 run, capped by a kill from Owens and an ace from Vogel, to take a 13-7 lead. Next, Joplin was the first to 20, as a kill from Owens gave the visitors a 20-16 advantage.
But the Bulldogs finished strong, closing the set on a 10-4 surge.
After a kill from Scott, Carl Junction junior Jocelyn Wengert served back-to-back aces to give the Bulldogs a 23-22 lead.
Moments later, Joplin tied it up at 24 after a kill from Vaughn and a block from Strickland. But CJ’s Scott slammed a kill before Sara Buchele’s ace gave the hosts the first set, 26-24.
Carl Junction reeled off the first seven points of the second set, but the Eagles stayed within striking distance the rest of the way.
The Bulldogs took a 24-20 lead after a kill from Chase, but the Eagles responded with four straight points—a kill from Owens, a kill from Calderon, an ace from Noirfalise and a CJ attack error.
However, like they did in the first set, the Bulldogs wouldn’t be denied. The hosts rattled off two straight points, once again ending a set with an ace, this time from Fowler.
Carl Junction gained some separation at 12-6 in the third set thanks to four straight aces from Carnes.
As they did all night, the Eagles kept coming, and the set was eventually deadlocked at 19, 20, 21 and 22-all.
The Eagles committed hitting errors on the final three points of the match, however, and the Bulldogs earned the clean sweep.
“We have to keep working on the little things,” Saunders said. “I think once we fix those little things, we’re going to surprise some people.”
Also of note, these two teams will meet in Central Ozark Conference play on October 3 in Joplin.
Joplin hosts Raymore-Peculiar at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Carthage will play Ray-Pec after the Joplin match.
Carl Junction hosts McDonald County on Tuesday.
Before stepping away at the conclusion of the 2020 season, Saunders spent 10 years as Joplin’s head volleyball coach after 12 years as an assistant.
