The Red Cloud Warriors will face off against the Wynot Blue Devils at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Red Cloud sitting on four straight wins and Wynot on ten.
Red Cloud can't be too worried about heading out to take on Wynot: they just beat Sandhills/Thedford at home, who had been dominant on their own court up to that point. The Warriors put the hurt on the Knights with a sharp 3-0 victory on Saturday.
While Red Cloud won a shutout, things came down to the wire in the third set they played. The match finished with set scores of 25-20, 25-19, 25-22.
Meanwhile, Wynot had already proven themselves in the regular season and they didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They were the clear victors by a 3-0 margin over Paxton on Saturday.
Not only was the match a shutout, it was a big one: Wynot took every set by at least 13 points. The final score came out to 25-12, 25-6, 25-11.
Red Cloud better keep an eye on Jaylin Geisen. She was instrumental in Wynot's win, getting 24 digs and three aces. That's the most digs Geisen has posted since back in October. Kiera Heimes was another key player, getting eight aces.
Wynot was lethal from the service line and finished the match with 16 aces. That's the most aces they've managed all season.
Red Cloud's record is now 22-9. As for Wynot, their record now sits at 28-4.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Thursday's contest: Red Cloud has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 6.5 aces per game. However, it's not like Wynot struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.3 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.