Watervliet Press Box
Volleyball beats Bridgman
The Panther varsity volleyball team is on a late-season roll after winning 15 straight games and eight matches in a row. Last week they easily took care of both Lawton and Hackett Catholic Prep and then won a big division matchup, 3-0, at Bridgman.
First, on Tuesday, Sept. 26 the team hosted both Lawton and Hackett in the Watervliet gym. They had little trouble with Lawton, winning 25-14 and 25-12 in a match that was never very close. The Hackett match was even quicker with the Panthers dominating 25-8 and 25-7.
Those matches weren’t much of a warm-up for their contest at Bridgman on Thursday, Sept. 28. The talented Bees came in at 9-2 and are at the top of the SAC Lakeshore Division, along with South Haven. The Panthers swept an exciting match 25-21, 25-17, and 25-23. That leaves Coloma as the team to beat to win the division, a matchup on Tuesday, Oct. 10 in Watervliet. Bridgman, South Haven, and Coloma are all 2-1 in the division with Watervliet at 3-0.
The Lady Panthers arrived at the noisy Bridgman gym on Sept. 28 confident but without head coach Edie Daugherty, who was away for a couple days. This senior-heavy team can run itself better than any other Panther squad given they play with multiple four-year starters, one of them being the captain on the court, all-stater Grace Chisek. That said, assistant coach Lori Pline was called to handle the team and she adroitly guided the team to the win.
The Bees quickly took a 6-1 lead in the first game before the Panthers got warmed up. The match was soon tied and the Panthers took the lead and appeared to win on a powerful and loud kill by Chisek, but she was called for being in the net. No problem, the Panthers simply took the ensuing Bridgman serve and did it all over again, getting the game point to win 25-21.
In game two, the Panthers took the lead early and kept it the rest of the way. Junior Susannah Weckwerth is filling big shoes as the left outside hitter and doing it well, making several kills including the last two points to win the game.
Game three was competitive with both teams taking leads, but the Panthers went ahead late and held on despite a furious and ultimately futile Bridgman rally.
Both teams played solid and entertaining volleyball with Watervliet getting 43 kills and Bridgman getting 22. The Panther defense didn’t allow Bridgman to make any scoring runs other than the opening of the match. The big Panther attacks came from several players and positions, including
Chisek making a handful of kills. The diminutive setter can jump as high and hit the ball as hard as anyone on the team, making her a big threat to defenses. Chisek led with 33 assists, 11 digs and eight kills. Susannah Weckwerth and Natalie Hart both had 10 kills and a handful of digs. Ellie Golden had eight kills and 16 digs and Tia Caldwell had 15 digs. Others making key contributions were Lauren Laws, Abby Whorton, Marleigh Schultz, and Anya Sexton.
The team plays at Buchanan on Thursday, Oct. 5, host Coloma on Tuesday, Oct. 10, and then play Saugatuck and Holland Black River at Coloma on Thursday, Oct. 12.
Varsity Football loses at United
The Panther football team took another tough road loss last week, losing to Kalamazoo United, 25-6. The United defense dominated the game while allowing the Panthers just 52 yards of net offense. Connor Underwood led the rushing attack with 75 yards on 20 attempts and Wyatt Epple caught four passes.
Watervliet hosts 4-2 South Haven for Homecoming on Friday, Oct. 6.
Boys Soccer falls to D-K
The Panther varsity boys soccer team fell to Delton-Kellogg, 3-1, on Wednesday, Sept. 27. The two Panther teams played a scoreless first half with the defense and keeper Landin Fuller stopping all opportunities.
In the second half, Delton took a 2-0 lead before Adrian Hernandez fed a cross to Alex Hicks who headed the ball into the net in the 73rd minute, to close the gap to 2-1. Watervliet pressed to get that tying goal, unfortunately leading to a late Delton score and the 3-1 final. The loss drops their record to 3-6-3 for the season.
The boys soccer team hosts Lawton Blue Devils on Monday, Oct. 9 and the Kalamazoo Cougars on Thursday, Oct. 12. They take on Constantine for the first game of the playoffs with the winner playing a tough Hartford team for a place in the district finals.
Cross-Country competes at County meet
The Panther high school boys cross-country team raced in the annual Berrien County meet last week, taking 8th place with all five runners doing well. Danny Mandujano (16:43) finished 5th overall in the field of 100 runners. Luke Isbrecht (19:34) posted a new PR, and Zeke Cardozo was the third Panther across the finish line followed by Alex Sexton who ran a season best 20:47. Devin Geisler also posted a season best improving by 13 seconds.
The Lady Panthers ran their best race of the season at the county meet. Morgan Lowell and Kimmy Romero continue to run great as Morgan (21:08) finished 14th and Kimmy (21:54) finished 24th. Other PRs or season bests on the day were Mimi Feneley, Abby Lomoro, Johanna Granados, Hailey Adams, Abbie Hayes, and Hanna Lomoro.
The teams run next at Portage on Saturday, Oct. 7.
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