Trysta Foster, Indian Creek volleyball power past Hinckley-Big Rock

HINCKLEY – After falling behind in its season opener before winning, the Indian Creek volleyball team took control early in both games against Hinckley-Big Rock on Thursday, winning the Little Ten Conference match, 25-11, 25-9.

“I would say we played better than we did Tuesday night, which was one of our goals,” Indian Creek coach Stephanie Crutcher said. “We always want to play better every practice, every set, every match. So I’m happy with that. We started off a lot stronger than we did the other night against Leland. We dug ourselves a hole, and it was nice to see them come out on fire.”

The Timberwolves (2-0 overall and Little Ten) scored the first four points in Game 1, built a 15-4 lead and coasted to a 25-11 win.

In the second game, they again scored the first four, then the Royals (1-1 overall and LTC) cut the lead to 7-4. But with Trysta Foster serving, IC rolled off eight straight to take control.

Foster, who had 11 kills Tuesday, finished with four Thursday to lead the Timberwolves. But after that run, Crutcher said she saw a more relaxed Foster play.

“Once she went on her serving run, she finally settled in to what she normally plays,” Crutcher said. “It just gives you more confidence. You relax a little bit when you know you have a bigger lead when you’re on a run like that.”

Hinckley-Big Rock was coming off a 25-19, 25-20 win against Hiawatha.

On Thursday, the Royals struggled with serve receive throughout the match, giving quick points to the Timberwolves.

“They’re a great team with great hitters,” Rich said. “Serve receive, we just need to move our feet. So that’s something we’ll work on in the next couple of weeks, always anticipate the ball and turning our bodies to the server, see where they’re pointing at.”

[ Photos from the Hinckley-Big Rock, Indian Creek match ]

By the numbers: Joleigh Cronin had five digs for the Royals, while Kayleigh McReynolds had a pair of blocks. Audrey Witte had three aces for the Timberwolves, and Clara Hulthen had two. Leah DeClue had seven digs, and Foster added five. Hulthen also added 15 assists.

Beyond the stats: The longest rally happened in Game 2 during Foster’s run serving. With the Timberwolves ahead, 11-4, both teams scrambled just to get the ball back over the net, until IC was able to set its offense and end with a dump over the net by Foster.

They said it: “We have things we need to work on,” Rich said. “We played Hiawatha on Tuesday, and we had a great start. We knew coming into Indian Creek it was going to be a competitive game. We want to make sure we learn from the experience.’

Up next: The Royals are at Earlville on Tuesday, and the Timberwolves host Newark on Tuesday.