Iola Middle School’s eighth grade volleyball team walked away with bronze at the Pioneer League tournament on Saturday to close out their season.
They end the year with an 11-2 record and a regular season Pioneer League title.
The Ponies opened the tournament with a bye as the number one seed before facing Burlington.
Iola had beat Burlington twice this season but ran into some trouble as they fell in straight sets (17-25, 20-25).
“Burlington played great and we didn’t have one of our best games,” head coach Terri Carlin said. “We missed too many serves. This was a tough loss for the girls.”
Despite the loss, Chloe Sell was on target from the serving line, serving up five aces and no service errors. She also had two assists and two kills off tips.
Jenna Curry had three kills and an ace, Reece Murry had two kills, Logan Ulrich had a kill, two assists, and an ace and Triniti Loveall had an ace and a kill.
The Ponies then moved to the third place match versus Osawatomie. Iola had beat them earlier this season and did the same on Saturday, winning in straight sets (25-22, 25-16).
“We were really serving and hitting the ball better in this game,” Carlin said.
Murry had 5 kills and 2 aces while Curry had 6 kills and 4 aces. Ulrich excelled passing the ball recording 5 assists, 2 aces and 1 kill.
Sell had 1 kills and 2 assists, Loveall had an ace and Ally Ellis had an assist.
With the win, the Ponies finished the tournament in third place.
“This is a talented bunch of girls,” Carlin said. “They are strong and work well together. Coach Korenne Witcomb and I are very proud of how hard they worked and played all season.”
Pony volleyball finishes third at Pioneer League Tournament
