Shelby hasn't had much luck against Willard recently, but that could start to change on Monday. The Whippets will square off against the Crimson Flashes at 6:30 p.m. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
On Thursday, Shelby beat Madison Comprehensive 3-1. The Whippets haven't had any issues with the Rams recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive victory against them.
Shelby walked away with the win (and looked especially good in the fourth set). The match finished with set scores of 25-16, 25-23, 23-25, 25-14.
Shelby got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Shelby Vaughn out in front who had eight digs and three aces. That's the most aces Vaughn has posted since back in September. Madison Henkel also deserves some recognition as she served her first ace of the season.
They weren't the only good servers: Shelby was lethal from the service line and finished the match with ten aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least five aces in four consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Willard got the win against Margaretta on Thursday by a conclusive 3-0.
While Willard won a shutout, things came down to the wire in the second set they played. The final score came out to 25-13, 25-23, 25-16.
Willard's win bumped their record up to 18-3. As for Shelby, they now have a winning record of 11-10.
Shelby skirted past Willard 3-2 in their previous meeting back in August of 2024. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Crimson Flashes' Morgan Lofland, who had 24 digs and two assists. Now that she won't be playing on Monday, will it be easier for the Whippets to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
