Cardinals volleyball places second at Baldwin Invitational Tournament

The Cardinals volleyball team took home the silver medals at the Baldwin Invitational Tournament Saturday. 

Head coach Brooke Hopper said the accomplishment was a complete team effort, and she is proud of the way the team battled all day long at the tournament. 

“At the end of the day, they did it, and they did it for each other,” Hopper said. 

The Cardinals faced Heritage Christian Academy in the championship round, but lost in straight sets to the Chargers 25-8 and 25-18. 

It wasn’t for a lack of effort on the Cardinals’ part, however. The Chargers were just the better team, senior Parker Long said. 

“They’re very sharp out there, and they just really connected as a team well,” Long said. “They really limited their own errors, and it made it a good outcome for them.” 

Overall, senior Rayah Foltz said she is happy with the second-place finish and how the team played. 

“I think we just worked really well together communicating. We had great talk on hitters and defense. It was all around good,” Foltz said. 

The team caught a glimpse of what it was like to face Heritage Christian in the final round of the seeding games. 

The first set did not go as planned as the team found themselves down 15-1 and ended up losing the set 25-11. 

The Cardinals also ended up losing the second set 25-22, but Hopper said the closer game gave the team a lot of momentum heading into the semifinals. 

“We just turned it up to a whole new notch in the second set,” Hopper said. “It was like, ‘This is who we can be.’ We need to be able to keep this gear in gear consistently, and so coming out of that I think that really was proof to the girls. It was proof to themselves.” 

The team carried that energy into the semifinals where they faced the home team and their rival: Baldwin. 

Hopper challenged the team to put the Bulldogs on notice.

“Before that game, I just talked to them about, you know, we want to make a statement. What statement do we want to come out and make today?” Hopper said. “They took that to heart, and they locked in and played aggressive.” 

The Cardinals’ pent up energy for this matchup could be seen throughout, but particularly late in the first set as the team continued to play with high effort. 

Senior Madison Karten and Long each made big saves to hold off a Bulldogs charge and win a point for the Cardinals at 19-15. 

Then, Foltz put an exclamation point on the first set after she spiked a ball over the net and knocked down a Baldwin player to make the score 24-19. The Cardinals won the set 25-21. 

In the second set, the Cardinals kept the momentum going as they jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead. 

But Baldwin would make a push and the set remained close until Karten made a huge kill to put the Cardinals up 23-17. The lead helped the Cardinals get the 25-20 win in the final set and secure the team’s biggest win of the season so far. 

Foltz said beating Baldwin on their court was special for the entire team. 

“Last year, we played them about five times and we lost to them five times,” Foltz said. “So, just coming out in the season opener [against Baldwin] and doing that was just huge for us and good to continue the season with.” 

Long said the revenge factor definitely played a role in taking down Baldwin. 

“It was very exciting to beat Baldwin because we’ve struggled with that for many years,” Long said. “So it was great to beat that team together.” 

Even though the team ended up losing to Heritage Christian for the championship, Hopper said she learned a lot about the team during the tournament. 

“I told them after the game, it’s also really great to see who’s going to step up and lead, and who’s going to buckle in and fight for each other,” Hopper said. “And that’s definitely what I saw from them.” 

After going against a good team like the Chargers, the Cardinals feel prepared for their next matchup against Spring Hill. 

“We’re really excited to see some more good competition, so it’ll be fun,” Foltz said. 

The Cardinals travel to Spring Hill where they will face the Broncos Tuesday night.

Hear more about the team’s second place finish from Long, Foltz and Hopper by watching the Kaw Valley State Bank post-game show. 

Reach reporter Jack Denebeim at [email protected].

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