Area squads tune up for the playoffs

By Casey Krautkramer

Marathon’s varsity volleyball team has adapted to a new starting lineup with younger players contributing in the wake of a few key player injuries. Usual starting players in senior Chenpieng Phakitthong and sophomore Mayven Schneider, were on the bench during Marathon’s 3-0 road loss to Mosinee on Thursday. A pair of freshmen, Rehgan Martin and Brinly Stencil, have stepped up in a big way on the court while their teammates are out with injuries.

Marathon co-head coach Lynelle Love said Mayven Schneider should return to action for the playoffs and she said there’s a chance Phakitthong could also rejoin the team on the court during the playoffs. In the meantime, Marathon’s normal backups have received valuable playing time.

“We’ve seen great things from all of them,” she said. “Brinley has stepped up and is doing a great job as a freshman. Sophomore Allison Podjaski has come in and given us some good serves and a few aces. Freshman Rehgan Martin is in the front row showing us strong hits and blocks as a presence at the net.”

Stencil led Marathon with two aces and senior Katie LeBlanc added an ace in the match loss to Mosinee. Junior Emma Love paced the Red Raiders with five attack kills. Martin led the team with two solo blocks and junior Mylee Haehlke added a solo block. Stencil paced Marathon with 12 pass assists. Sophomore Katelyn Love led the Red Raiders on defense with 18 digs while senior Kyla Heise added 10.

Marathon has a 22-10 match record this season going into the playoffs. Marathon received a first round playoff bye on Tuesday and will play against Prescott at 7 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 24, in a home WIAA Division 3 regional semifinal. Should Marathon win, then it would host the regional championship at 7 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 26.

Tigers down Thunderbirds

Stratford’s volleyball squad beat Lakeland Union, 3-1, Thursday on the road. The Tigers have won 20 consecutive matches this season.

Senior Mckenzie Novotny led the Tigers with 11 kills while senior Kalyn Schueller added nine. Senior Daisy Yoder contributed seven kills and senior Emerson Roy had five.

Schueller paced Stratford with five aces and Roy added two. Roy led the Tigers with 18 assists and senior Laney Pankratz had nine. Schueller led the team with seven digs and sophomore Carly Pankratz added six. Junior Tria Tubbs paced the Tigers with two solo blocks and two block assists while Schueller had one solo block and two block assists.

Stratford has an impressive 29-3 match record this season. Stratford received a first round playoff bye on Tuesday and will play against Stanley-Boyd at 7 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 24, in a home WIAA Division 3 regional semifinal. Should Stratford win, then it would host the regional championship at 7 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 26.

Athens, Edgar ready to go

The Athens volleyball team received a first round bye in Tuesday’s playoffs and will play at 7 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 24, in a home WIAA Division 5 regional semifinal against Almond/Bancroft. Should Athens win then it would likely play at No. 1 seed Marshfield Columbus in the regional championship at 7 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 26. The Bluejays have a 525 match record this season.

Edgar’s volleyball squad received a first round bye in Tuesday’s playoffs and will play at 7 p.m this Thursday, Oct. 24, in a home WIAA Division 4 regional semifinal against Coleman. Should Edgar win then it would likely play at No. 2 seed Phillips in the regional championship at 7 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 26. The Wildcats have a 1613 match record this season.

MARATHON BLOCK PARTY IN MOSINEE - Marathon varsity volleyball players, junior Mylee Haehlke (11) and senior Kyla Heise (15) utilize a combination block against Mosinee during Thursday’s 3-0 match loss.

STAFF PHOTO/CASEY KRAUTKRAMER