Greensburg — The North Decatur volleyball team claimed the annual Civil War trophy in a spirited battle at South Decatur Tuesday night.

The Lady Chargers won in four sets, 25-18, 25-21, 22-25, 25-23, improving North's overall record to 4-3.

South won the third set 25-22, hoping to force a match tie with another set win. However, North quenched the Cougars' rally despite hitting errors and timely South plays.

"This is a great win for us on so many levels," said head coach Betsy Litmer. "It starts us off 1-0 in the MHC, we got to bring back the Civil War Trophy, and we had to really rally from a deficit to get the win. I definitely have a team who fights. We had some big play makers at the end of set 4 that truly helped clinch it for us."

North junior Heather Hayden and sophomore Jenna Meyer led the Chargers up front. Hayden tallied 18 kills, while Meyer added 12.

"As far as the two of them," said Litmer of the hitting duo, "that's the most consistent we've been."

North travels to Knightstown tomorrow (Thursday) against another Mid-Hoosier Conference rival.

North Varsity Statistics:

Shelby Neimeyer served 2-2, 1 ace.

Denia Laudick served 7-8, 1 ace; received 18-19; 8 digs.

Molly Davis served 13-14, 1 ace; received 31-32; 15 digs.

Heather Hayden served 22-23, 5 aces; received 12-17; hit 29-34, 18 kills; 2 digs.

Alyson Hoeing hit 18-22, 6 kills; 1 dig.

Kelly Schwering served 9-12; hit 10-11, 4 kills; set 101-102, 37 assists; 10 digs.

Crystal Koors served 29-31, 6 aces; received 4-6; hit 16-18, 5 kills; 7 digs.

Kate Schomber served 3-4; 1 dig.

Jenna Meyer hit 14-22, 12 kills; 1 block; 3 digs.

Jamie Tichenor served 1-3; received 5-6; hit 7-10, 3 kills; 1 block; 10 digs.

Litmer commended individual girls for their contributions to the team win afterward.

"Crystal Koors had a phenomenal serving night that really helped set the tone," said Litmer. "Heather Hayden had the best all-around game I've seen out of her since her freshman year. Her patience at attacking the ball was a dramatic improvement and she really made solid contact and put some big kills away. Jenna Meyer definitely had her best hitting night as well, and as she gains more experience and time on the court, she'll become more consistent for us. Molly Davis and Denia Laudick were close to perfect with their passing and our setter, Kelly Schwering, took great care of the ball mixing up our hitters and utilizing who was on for us tonight. Everyone did their part when they were asked to, and it was a great team win."

The Chargers play at Knightstown Thursday, Sept. 9 at 6 p.m.

South head coach Lisa Bennett praised her team's hitting, but noted the Cougars need to make more overall improvements.

"The girls played a good game tonight, but just couldn't pull out a win," said Bennett. "Michaela, Jamie, Kassie, and Keri all had a good hitting game tonight, but the team struggled with passing the ball. We have some improvements to make to be more competitive with the teams in our conference."

For the Lady Cougars, Liz Nobbe and Ashleigh Ewing combined to set 69-for-69 with 10 assists. South set 82-for-83 as a team (98.8 percent).

Kassidie Diekhoff hit 23-for-27 (85%) with 5 kills, while Jamie Johannigman hit 18-for-21 (85.7%) with six kills and 9 blocks. Keri Deck hit 14-for-20 with five kills and six blocks.

Michaela Johnson served 18-for-19 with a team-high two aces, and hit 12-for-14 with three kills and five blocks. Diekhoff served 18-for-20 with an ace. Johannigman served 8-for-8. Ewing served 12-for-13.

Katie Mote passed 27-for-33 (81.8%) with three digs, while Nobbe passed 27-for-32 (84.3%).

The Cougars next play today (Thursday) against another Mid-Hoosier Conference opponent, Southwestern (Shelby).



JV Cougars Top Chargers In Two



The South junior varsity team won 25-15, 25-13.

North's junior varsity record falls to 2-4.

North JV statistics:

Brianna Hagerty served 4-4; set 28-28, 2 assists; hit 4-4, 3 kills.

Emma Geis received 8-12; 1 dig.

Erin Yager received 3-4; 8 digs.

Erin Hoeing received 7-8; served 6-8, 1 ace.

Meghan Fullenkamp served 3-3.

Lindsay Nobbe 1 dig.

Anna Schwartz served 2-3; hit 2-3.

Lizzie Lewis 1 dig.

Alison Wallpe served 4-5; hit 6-8, 3 kills; 1 dig.

Anna Wallpe served 1-2; hit 6-6, 1 kill.