FORTVILLE — With multiple matches a week, and sometimes on back-to-back days, there are times when having a short memory is a must during volleyball season.
The Marauders (7-3, 1-0) learned that firsthand Thursday night.
After a 3-0 loss on Wednesday night at North Central that snapped a five-game winning streak, they responded with a 3-1 win at home over Pendleton Heights (5-5, 0-1) to open the Hoosier Heritage Conference schedule.
“It’s a big confidence boost for us going into next week,” Mt. Vernon head coach Samantha Grider said. “Especially with having to go to Delta next week, it’s big to get this one.”
Through the first half of Set 1, it looked as though the Marauders’ woes from the night before had followed them back to their home gym.
They fell behind early 10-4, then 18-7, and later 21-13 before something changed.
Eleven of the next 12 points went to Mt. Vernon. A Sierra Holverson kill gave the Marauders back the serve and Holverson then held serve for seven straight points, with four of the points coming on aces.
The stretch gave them a 24-22 lead, but the Arabians fought back for the 26-24 win.
The comeback by Mt. Vernon, though, set the tone for the rest of the night.
A 25-23 hard-fought win in Set 2 by the Marauders was followed with dominant 25-9 and 25-17 wins to close things out.
“I think our blocking picked up tremendously in those second, third, and fourth sets which made our entire defense a lot more scrappy, and we were able to get some more touches,” Grider said.
Mt. Vernon found itself down late in Set 2, 19-14, but as they did in Set 1, they wouldn’t go away easily.
An Easton Wampler kill sparked the comeback and after an Avery Delello diving dig, Wampler’s third kill in a four-point stretch moved the Marauders back within one point.
Two kills from Olivia Johnson, and two aces from Ava Whitmore gave the Marauders a chance to win the set, and Sophia Damer delivered with a kill to close things out.
“They looked a lot better, made some big plays tonight, that’s for sure,” Grider said about her team’s front row.
The momentum of winning Set 2, allowed Mt. Vernon to grab the first five points of Set 3 en route to a stress-free 25-9 win.
In Set 4, the Marauders controlled things from start to finish again. Leads of 5-2, 14-5, and 17-10 kept the Arabians at bay until the eventual 25-17 win to secure the Marauders a 1-0 start in the HHC.
Holverson had a big night for the Marauders with — unofficially — five kills, and six aces.
Eight different people contributed points for the Marauders, including Johnson, who had four kills in the Set 3 win.
After playing six games since Saturday, Mt. Vernon now has a few days of rest.
They return to the court on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Brownsburg.
