Shorthanded Lady Zs gets 8 kills from Walley, 7 from Wieringa in loss to Maconaquah
BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
BUNKER HILL — The shorthanded Rochester volleyball team lost to conference and sectional rival Maconaquah 25-16, 25-20, 25-14 Sept. 22.
Makayla Walley had eight kills, Amara Wieringa had seven, and Brailyn Hunter had six.
Aubrey Wilson had 21 assists, two aces and three blocks. Freshman Kinley McKee also had three blocks.
Wieringa and Logyn Honkomp had 11 digs each, Emma Mathias had 10, and Walley had nine.
Walley also led with 13 serves received, and Mathias had 10.
Rochester is 12-6 overall and 3-3 in the Three Rivers Conference. Maconaquah is 18-7, 5-1.
Maconaquah won 23 points in a 27-point span at one point, closing out the first set and jumping out to an 11-1 lead in the second set.
Rochester would answer with a 16-4 run, storming back to take a 17-15 lead. Maconaquah then won 19 of the next 22 points, closing out the second set and jumping out to a 9-0 lead in the third set.
“Even though we had that run, I still feel like they played to not lose,” Rochester coach Laneia Strasser said of the run in the second set. “I don’t feel like mentally they were focused in and dialed in. There were a lot of lineup changes. We’ve got concussions, sprained ankles, torn ACLs. This is the part of the season where it becomes a mental game, and the upperclassmen and the girls with the most experience have to be the ones out there that set the tone and lead mentally. I feel like they looked a little defeated, but I mean, it would have been a different match if we would have won.”
Rochester has not beaten Maconaquah since 2022. In fact, they have not won a set against Maconaquah since then.
Ireland Kile and Kasey Murry had nine kills each, and Lucee Jernagan had eight.
“In my head, I don’t think hitting-wise they’re that powerful,” Strasser said. “They’re just scrappy, and they don’t give up. Our girls just played in chaos and gave up, I felt like.”
Rochester was playing without sophomore Adalyn Gonzalez, out with a head injury suffered in a Sept. 17 match at Northfield. Rochester is already playing without junior middle hitter Maddie Bailon, out for the season with a knee injury suffered against Triton Aug. 24.
Rilyn Strasser also suffered a head injury – “not necessarily a concussion but other things going on,” coach Strasser said – against Northfield. She received limited playing time against Maconaquah.
Walley played despite suffering a sprained right ankle against Northfield.
McKee and sophomores Hope Baugh and Lyla Bowers received extensive playing time with the injured players out.
“There were a lot of girls that stepped up tonight and got put out there on the court, and I think they all played well, the ones I stuck in those positions,” coach Strasser said. “Kinley’s just an athletic kid, and she doesn’t really think a whole lot about it. She’s just even-keeled. There’s no emotion, which is what you kind of need to be in volleyball.
“Hope did great too. Hope’s not going to be your power hitter, but I looked at her more as a block in that situation. So that’s mainly why I put her out there is because I wanted to utilize her as a block, just to get some touches and slow some stuff down. … Lyle Bowers did great. I’ve seen better play out of Lyla, but you expect that for being tossed out into a varsity game. I would expect more girls getting some playing time moving forward with the injuries that we have.”
MACONAQUAH DEF. ROCHESTER, 25-16, 25-20, 25-14
Rochester stats
Makayla Walley – 8 kills, 1 ace, 1 block, 9 digs, 2 assists, 13 serves received; Kyra Doran – 1 kill; Hope Baugh – 2 kills, 1 dig, 1 serve received; Aubrey Wilson – 2 kills, 2 aces, 3 blocks, 7 digs, 21 assists, 6 serves received; Sylvia McCall – 2 kills, 2 blocks, 7 digs, 2 serves received; Brailyn Hunter – 6 kills, 1 dig; Amara Wieringa – 7 kills, 2 blocks, 11 digs, 1 assist, 6 serves received; Lyla Bowers – 1 ace, 7 digs, 8 serves received; Kinley McKee – 3 blocks, 1 dig; Logyn Honkomp – 11 digs, 1 assist, 6 serves received; Emma Mathias – 10 digs, 10 serves received; Rilyn Strasser – 2 digs, 5 serves received
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