YATES CENTER — The Yates Center Wildcats celebrated senior night with a pair of Three Rivers League sweeps as they maintained the top spot in the TRL standings Monday.
After opening senior night with a 25-10, 25-12 victory over the Southern Coffey County Lady Titans, the Wildcats began pulling their starters in the back half of Tuesday’s 25-10, 25-12 blowout of the Altoona-Midway—giving the seniors some time to watch the next generation of Wildcats in finish the game.
“We got some younger players in once we had a solid lead,” Yates Center coach Carrie Cummings said. “We served well. We took great swings at the net. We just got after it. We knew it was going to be a big night for us. We were prepared.”
Following Tuesday’s action, the Wildcats remain undefeated in the TRL at 8-0. They will test themselves against some of the area’s best teams Saturday at the West Franklin Volleyball Tournament. But their biggest test of all may be Tuesday’s triangular at Oswego. Both the host Oswego Indians and visiting St. Paul Indians are also undefeated in TRL play. A win Tuesday would further cement Yates Center’s position atop the standings, and senior outside hitter Cayten Cummings believes her team can do it.
“We have to keep going, and we can’t stop here,” said Cayten Cummings.
“We just have to keep playing our style of play on our side of the court. I’m excited because we’ve been working so hard in practice. [Future opponents] may be difficult, but I know we can handle it.”
A TRL title would be a fitting end for the Wildcats, who recognized their five seniors in Cummings, Linde Hodges, Jayda Rice, Mylin Tidd and Jaylynn Birk. Their journey to the top of the TRL standings this season is the culmination of years of effort.
“We were ready to go after winning the first game,” Rice said. “It was really fun and we were all excited. I started volleyball only two years ago because I was playing football. I’ve seen this team really take a step up, and it’s been great.”
Lady Titans snap 11-game slide
While the Yates Center Wildcats’ journey may be at its peak, the Southern Coffey County Lady Titans’ ascendency in the TRL is just beginning. After falling to Yates Center in the opener, the Lady Titans regrouped to sweep Altoona-Midway 25-13, 25-3.
“Things felt off in the first match against Yates Center,” SCC coach Jeff True said. “We didn’t play well. We had low energy and couldn’t get things going. In the last set against Altoona we started passing the ball and setting up some good attacks.”
Aces proved the difference-maker in the opener as freshman outside hitter Reagan Houston ripped six consecutive serves to put the Lady Titans up 10-0 before a timeout by Altoona-Midway. The Lady Titans continued pummeling the Jets until a net ball set up match point, then another Houston ace sealed it 25-12.
“It’s a confidence boost for sure, and hopefully we can keep pushing and get a few more wins after this one,” senior outside hitter Layla Decker said.
The second set went the same as the first, as Houston kept her hot hand going. Sophomore middle hitter Madalynn Garretson got into the mix with a push, then junior outside hitter Alexis Riedinger got into the action with a few kills before a kill by freshman setter Addison Watts sealed the sweep.
“It feels pretty good, and I’ve worked all summer for it,” said Riedinger, who became one of the Lady Titans’ strongest attackers after switching from outside hitter to middle hitter. “It feels good to finally see my effort pay off.”
With the win, the Lady Titans improved their record to 2-17 and picked up their first Three Rivers League win of the season, with a 1-8 TRL record. They’ve already matched their win total from last year, and with a little under a month left before the postseason, they hope to add a few more wins.
