Familiarity hopes to breed success for Ozaukee volleyball

All the Ozaukee High School volleyball players return this season, and they’re already showing some mental toughness and a motivation for revenge.

After a heartbreaking five-set loss at rival Random Lake on Sept. 3, the Warriors came back the next week and swept Kenosha St. Joseph, 25-13, 25-14, 25-10, on Sept. 8.

“We did lose to them in regionals last year. It was kind of nice to get one on our side,” coach Amy Barnes said.

Her daughter Maddy Barnes had 11 kills, Leighton Schmitz had six, and Kendyl Schmitz and Adalyn Krenek each had five. Barnes fired six aces and had 10 digs. Trahern Bartels had 11 digs and Krenek had 10. Helen Utecht had 25 saves.

The Warriors only missed six serves.

“We’re getting really good serving from everybody for the most part, and we’re being a little more aggressive on serving,” Barnes said.

Last Thursday, the Warriors lost to longtime powerhouse Howards Grove in a tight three-set match, 25-20, 26-24, 25-23. Ozaukee held leads in the second and third sets.

“I was super, super proud of the way we played. Last year we went to Howards and didn’t fare very well,” coach Barnes said. “On Thursday night, we really came to play.”

The Warriors went 3-2 and finished fifth in a tournament at Lourdes Academy last Saturday.

Twenty-two players are in the program.

Bartels returns after earning Big East Conference honorable mention as libero last season.

This season, a rule change allows two liberos to swap out within a set that doesn’t count as a substitution, and Barnes said she is taking advantage of it.

“If Trahern is on the court and needs a break, we can pull her out and don’t have to wait for a rotation switch,” Barnes said.

Kenedeigh Harness has been the Warriors’ other libero.

Bianca Marini and Victoria Radke are the team’s defensive specialists.

Maddy Barnes and Krenek are the outside hitters and Layton Schmidt moves from middle to right-side. Kennedy Brown is one of the middle hitters, along with Kendyl Schmidt, who stands 6 feet, 1 inch.

Utecht returns at setter.

Coach Barnes is glad to get everyone back for her second year at the helm. The team went 19-16 overall last season and 2-4 in the Big East.

“They’re a year older, a little bit more seasoned, a little more experienced,” she said. “It’s nice to have everybody back that we had last year.”

The team has more flexibility this season.

“We’re able to move girls around a little bit more. All of our hitters can play any position in the front row, really,” Barnes said.

Ozaukee, 5-4 overall and 0-2 in the Big East, was to host Sheboygan Lutheran on Tuesday, Sept. 15, and host Sheboygan Christian on Thursday, Sept. 17.

Grafton starts the season 16-2

Last year’s Division 2 runner-up Grafton, which returned most of its lineup, is off to a hot start.

The Black Hawks swept Whitefish Bay, 25-10, 25-12, 25-20, at home Sept. 8. Grace Tilley and Addison Lempke each had eight kills. Senior Paige Proefrock, who has more than 1,000 kills in her career, had seven. Brooke Vanden Berg had six. Ava Dotson had five aces. Abby Barthelemy had 14 digs. Paige Arentz had 17 assists and Dotson had 13.

The Hawks didn’t make any serve-receive errors.

Grafton went 2-1 at the Manitowoc Lincoln Invite last Saturday. They swept the hosts and Fond du Lac and got swept by Arrowhead.

The Hawks, 16-2 overall and 2-0 in the North Shore Conference, were to play at Homestead on Tuesday, Sept. 16. They host a quad on Saturday, Sept. 19, and host Nicolet on Thursday, Sept. 24.