Concordia captures title in invitational tournament
Shaking off a loss to Riley County in pool play, the Concordia High School volleyball team knocked off a pair of ranked teams in bracket play to win its own invitational tournament on Friday.
Concordia downed Beloit, ranked second in Class 3A,in the semifinals and then beat Smith Center, ranked sixth in Class 2A, in straight sets in the championship match.
“I am very proud of the girls for their efforts. They had to battle to win against some great volleyball teams, and it was a complete team effort,” Concordia coach Rio Brown said. “Overall, the girls competed hard, stayed mentally tough and played with intensity.”
Concordia, now 17-11 overall, went 3-1 in pool play.
The Panthers swept Beloit, 25-14, 25-21 in the semifinals.
Taegen Larsen had eight kills and seven digs for Concordia.
Chloe Conway finished with five kills, five blocks, three digs and six service points.
Kendall Reynolds had 54 good sets in 54 attempts with 12 assists, 11 digs, seven blocks and three kills.
Zoe Bechard and Katlynn Miller had 10 digs each.
Shaina Wright had three kills, six digs and five service points.
Concordia then defeated Smith Center in two sets, 25-19, 25-18.
Conway and Larsen had nine kills each.
Reynolds had 63 good sets in 63 attempts with 24 assists, five digs and three kills.
Wright finished with 17 service points with six aces, five kills and six digs.
The Panthers opened pool play with a 25-13, 25-22 win over Republic County.
Conway had eight kills and eight service points with two aces.
Larsen added seven kills and nine digs.
Bechard had 14 digs and six service points.
Miller had seven digs and six service points.
Wright had eight service points and three kills.
Reynolds had 68 good sets in 68 attempts with 19 assists, five kills and four digs.
The Panthers downed Southeast of Saline in two sets, 25-10, 25-12.
Wright head eight kills, five digs and six service points.
Larsen also had eight kills to go with seven digs.
Conway had seven kills.
Bechard had nine digs and seven service points.
Reynolds had 53 good sets in 53 attempts with 25 assists and eight service points.
Concordia then suffered its lone loss of the day to Riley County in three sets, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21.
Miller had six service points. Larsen and Conway had four each.
The Panthers capped off pool play with a 25-14, 25-11 win over Minneapolis.
Conway had 16 kills, five digs and four blocks.
Reynolds had 46 good sets in 46 attempts with 23 assists.
Miller had 30 good serves in 30 attempts with 26 service points and six digs.
“We had a setback with Riley County, but the girls responded and came back out ready to play the next match,” Brown said.
Concordia then beat Beloit in the semifinals and Smith Center in the finals.
The Panthers will host Marysville for a pair of North Central Kansas League matches on Tuesday.
CONCORDIA INVITATIONAL
Pool Play
Red Pool
Concordia def. Republic County, 25-13, 25-22; Concordia def. Southeast of Saline, 25-10, 25-12; Southeast of Saline def. Republic County, 22-25, 25-23, 25-20; Riley County def. Concordia, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21; Concordia def. Minneapolis, 25-14, 25-11; Minneapolis def. Southeast of Saline, 25-19, 25-12; Riley County def. Republic County, 25-10, 25-14; Minneapolis def. Riley County, 24-26, 25-20, 25-23; Minneapolis def. Republic County, 25-20, 25-10; Riley County def. Southeast of Saline, 25-14, 25-17.
Red Pool
Smith Center def. Beloit, 25-13, 16-25, 25-19; Smith Center def. Clay Center, 25-12, 25-20; Beloit def. Clay Center, 25-18, 22-25, 25-14; Marysville def. Clay Center, 25-20, 22-25, 25-18; Beloit def. Marysville, 25-18, 25-13; Smith Center def. Marysville, 25-15, 24-26, 26-24.
Semifinals
Concordia def. Beloit, 25-14, 25-21; Smith Center def. Riley County, 17-25, 26-24, 28-26.
Third-Place Match
Beloit def. Riley County, 15-25, 25-2, 27-25.
Championship Match
Concordia def. Smith Center, 25-19, 25-17.
Consolation Semifinals
Clay Center def. Minneapolis, 23-25, 25-23, 25-16; Marysville def. Southeast of Saline, 25-9, 25-12.
Consolation Finals
Marysville def. Clay Center, 25-12, 25-20.