The West Plains Lady Zizzers handled Willow Springs Sept. 1 with a 3-0 sweep (25-6, 25-10, 25-6) at West Plains High School, putting together the steady performance head coach Hailey Beazley wanted to see after the team battled inconsistency in its opening matchups.
The Lady Zizzers swept Mtn. Home 3-0 the previous night, but Beazley noted the team allowed Mtn. Home to put together several scoring runs directly tied to West Plains errors.
“It was a great first game and starting point, but we wanted to focus on cleaning it up, and I think we did a good job of that against Willow,” Beazley said.
Against Willow Springs, those mistakes were largely absent. West Plains controlled the match from the outset and put relentless pressure on the Lady Bears, dodging the stretches of unforced errors that had allowed Mtn. Home to generate momentum.
“We played clean against Willow and didn't have many errors,” Beazley said. “Something we are focusing on is taking care of our side no matter who our opponent is, and we did a really good job of that.”
The offensive attack was led by Violet Hafer, who finished with 13 kills while hitting .393. Natalie Ell added 11 kills and Delani Wahome contributed eight. Defensively, Emmie Brunson recorded 10 digs, while Ell added nine.
The performance also highlighted an early strength at the net. Beazley pointed out that West Plains blocked nicely as a team against the Lady Bombers, providing another positive sign as the roster continues to establish its identity.
Tuesday's match was a marked step toward the consistency Beazley has emphasized since the preseason. That focus began at an Aug. 26 jamboree in Springfield, where West Plains defeated Glendale 3-0 and Branson 2-1.
While the Lady Zizzers served well during the jamboree, the team struggled at times with consistent passing, allowing opponents to string together points.
“The jamboree showed us that we need to clean up our serve receive,” Beazley said. “We let them go on runs because we were struggling passing. We did a great job serving that night, though.”
SIDEBAR/BREAKOUT BOX
'Rally for a Cure' game Sept. 22
The West Plains Zizzers volleyball team will host a "Rally for a Cure" game against Winona at 6 p.m. Sept. 22 at Zizzer Stadium.
Fans are encouraged to help "pink out" the stadium in support of the special event. Commemorative Pink Out T-shirts are available for purchase online at 5dscreenprinting.com/collections/zizzer-volleyball-pink-out.
