Photo by Lee Epps
It was the sixth consecutive winning season for coach Kelsey Morken and the Spring Grove volleyball girls, who finished at 8-4, including a 5-4 conference mark to tie for third place in the six-team SEC East Division race. Considering two break-even seasons, it has been a dozen seasons since the Lions finished below.500, the longest non-losing streak in program history.
The Lions significantly out-served the opposition and also outscored them near the net. They displayed considerable athleticism while keeping the ball in the air on defense.
The 12 matches were the fewest in 43 years, but 2020 was an unprecedented season, which began late and finished early due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At first, it appeared there would be no season at all. But suddenly, a 14-match regular season was approved, to be followed by a section tournament. The Lions managed to play 12 matches before the pandemic forced the state’s abrupt end of the regular season with the playoffs canceled. Of the 25 teams in Section 1A, only two were able to play the 14 allowed regular-season matches this year. Of the 53 teams in Section 1A, 1AA or 1AAA, 26 of them – fewer than half – were able to play 10 or more matches.
With health-concern cancelations, there was a late-season adjustment to the number of conference matches. Only matches versus division rivals would count toward the division championship. Crossover results would not count this season.
All four Lion losses came against East Division competition, including two versus undefeated and state-ranked Mabel-Canton (14-0, 10-0 SEC). There were three closely-contested sets in a road setback against SEC East runner-up Lanesboro (10-3, 6-2 SEC), which took Mabel-Canton to five sets. The rematch with the Burros was one of the two cancelations during the final week.
Spring Grove split with Randolph, leaving both tied for third place. The 3-2 loss at Randolph was the Lions’ only five-set match. The Grove girls earned the split with a 3-1 home win in the rematch.
The Lions claimed season sweeps versus East Division rivals, Houston and Schaeffer Academy. After starting with three victories against West Division foes Glenville-Emmons, LeRoy-Ostrander and Kingsland, the girls remained above .500 all season.
The Lion ladies held their greatest statistical advantage from the service line, where they served 91% for the season and the opponents 85%. Only in one match were the Lions out-served percentage-wise, edged by Mabel-Canton 89% to 88%.
The girls served twice as many aces (158) than errors (79). Meanwhile, opponents often lost points at the service line with 101 aces and 117 misfires. Only in the setback at Lanesboro did Grove have more errors than aces. The opposition, however, served more errors than aces in seven of the 12 matches.
Near the net, Spring Grove hit with 14% efficiency (kills minus errors, divided by attempts), slightly better than the opponents’ 12% season success. The level of competition was a factor. The girls attacked with season-highs of 38% and 29% against winless Schaeffer Academy. Only once versus undefeated Mabel-Canton did the Lions have fewer kills than hitting errors. Two opponents suffered that fate.
Morken said exceptional senior leadership from Kelsey Bratland, Paige Jahnke and VaNessa Peterson allowed the Lions to make the most of the challenging situation. She was pleased with how the team responded to the strange situation and progressed throughout a short season. After missing about four months of usual preparation, including no summer league or preseason scrimmages, an experienced, nine-letter-winner lineup was especially vital to success.
Ironically, the Lions were both experienced and young. There were three seniors, but the playing rotation also included three juniors and four sophomores.
Numbers were strong; considering the varsity, B-team and freshman squads, there were 8 juniors, 9 sophomores, 1 freshman and 7 eighth graders. The varsity finished 8-4, the B-team 7-3 and the young freshman team 4-2-1.
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Spring Grove Volleyball
8-4 (5-4 SEC)
2-0 vs. Houston (3-1, 3-0)
2-0 vs. Schaeffer Academy (3-0, 3-0)
1-0 vs Glenville-Emmons (3-0)
1-0 vs. LeRoy-Ostrander (3-0)
1-0 vs. Kingsland 2-1
1-1 vs. Randolph (2-3, 3-1)
0-1 Lanesboro (0-3)
0-2 vs. Mabel-Canton (0-3, 0-3)
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B-team volleyball
7-3
2-0 vs. Randolph (2-1, 2-1)
2-0 vs. Houston (2-0, 2-0)
1-0 at Lanesboro (2-1)
1-0 Glenville-Emmons (2-0)
1-0 vs. LeRoy-Ostrander ( 2-0)
0-1 vs. Kingsland (1-2)
0-2 vs. Mabel-Canton (0-2, 1-2)
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Freshman volleyball
4-2-1
2-0 vs. Randolph ( 2-0, 2-0)
1-0 vs. Lanesboro (2-0)
1-0 vs. Houston (2-0)
0-0-1 vs. Kingsland (1-1)
0-2 vs. Mabel-Canton (0-2, 0-2)