BUFFALO – The Altoona-Midway Middle School volleyball team got its first taste of victory hereMonday afternoon.
The Lady Jets came away with a hard-fought three-set triumph over Elk Valley (23-25, 25-16,
15-6) to cap off action in a triangular they hosted at Milo Peterson Gymnasium. The win gave
Altoona-Midway a split for the day’s action, as AMMS lost its opening match against Altamont
(9-25, 13-25).
“I can’t put into words how happy and proud I am of our girls,” said Lady Jet head coach Chary
Weilert. “Our fundamental skills are definitely improving, which is a big plus … but I’m ecstatic
about how they responded really well to my coaching during the match. Coachability is a huge
key to improving, so these girls have a lot of potential.” AMMS (1-3) is scheduled to travel to Tryo on Thursday, Sept. 14, for a dual match against the Lady Eagles. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m.
AMMS vs. Altamont-
Altoona-Midway took a while to get everything rolling Tuesday, falling 25-9, 25-13 to Altamont in
the opening match.
“We came out a little cold in that first set,” Weilert noted. “We definitely warmed up for set
two. Even though we lost 13-25, our serving improved to 84 percent (compared to 70 percent)
and our “on target” passing improved to 50 percent (up from 28 percent).”
Sophia Sweigart and Sandra Morales each had attacks at the net during the match.
AMMS vs. Elk Valley-
After suffering a narrow 25-23 setback to Elk Valley in the first set, the Lady Jets responded in
splendid fashion, evening the match with a 25-16 win and then taking the deciding third set 15-6
for their first victory of the 2023 season. “It’s tough to come back and win two sets after losing the first one, and that’s exactly what the girls did,” Weilert exclaimed. “They showed mental toughness and a determination to win. Regardless of the score, they kept their heads up and kept themselves focused on what needed to be done.”
Destiny Raymond stepped up big-time in the serving department for AMMS, recording 12 aces
for the match (four in each set). Emily Burch added three important aces in the second set to
help even the match, while Sweigart, Morales, and Ashlynn Sicka all fired aces against the
Lions. Morales also recorded two more attacks at the net.
In between the “A” matches, AMMS got its “B” players in a single-set action against Altamont.
The set went 25-0 in favor of Altamont.