St. Edmond all business
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The St. Edmond volleyball team started the year off on a winning note here on Thursday, sweeping Eagle Grove.
Scores were 26-24, 25-9 and 25-16.
The Gaels were led by sophomores Eden Horn and Rihanna Myers. Horn recorded 14 kills, six aces and two blocks, while Myers tallied 19 assists with a kill and an ace.
Senior Chloe Palmer recorded four kills, eighth-grader Emerie Horn had three, and junior Olivia Andrew and sophomore Ellasyn Whitmore each had two.
"I feel like the girls are really learning how to play volleyball," SEHS head coach Lindsay Heffernan said. "They are learning more about the game and should just really be proud of the growth they have already experienced.
"Of course, we still have things to work on, but I feel like we showed improvement even from the first set to the second."
St. Edmond and the Eagles traded blows early before the Gaels used a 11-5 run to take control. During that spurt, Emerie Horn had her first block and kill to make it 20-14.
Eagle Grove would rally, scoring five straight to draw within a point difference on two different occasions before St. Edmond finished it off.
Taytum Edwards led the Eagles with four kills and four blocks, as Addison Eittreim and Salem Willard each had three kills.
That momentum would carry over for the Gaels into the second set, as they scored the first five points and never looked back. St. Edmond took advantage of several miscues by Eagle Grove's attack.
"We were able to play a little faster and get into position better," Heffernan said. "We have people on the court that can attack from all different positions, and our defense showed they can really play hard at the net."
The Gaels never trailed in the second or third sets, as they used an 11-0 run in the second and a 6-2 burst in the third to pull away and secure the sweep.
St. Edmond will now turn its attention to Saturday when they host Bishop Garrigan, Pocahontas Area, Southeast Valley, Webster City and Aplington-Parkersburg for an invitational. Action starts at 8:30 a.m.
"We're going to continue to work on executing and establishing what we want to do," Heffernan said. "I feel like we're going to be able to take several steps forward throughout the day on Saturday."