The Oxford varsity volleyball team had their first look at this season’s competition this past weekend at the Imlay City Invitational.
Oxford was pooled with Almont, Capac, Lake Orion, and rival North Branch. The top two teams advanced to the semifinals.
For the first time in a very long time at the Imlay City tournament, Oxford didn’t advance out of their pool. The Ladycats finished with a 1-1-2 record on the day.
The Ladycats came out timid and struggled to put all their strengths together to be a force. Oxford split with Almont and Lake Orion and beat Capac in the morning.
It all came down to the North Branch game to decide Oxford’s fate.
They needed to win at least one of the two games against North Branch.
For the first time in that day, Oxford came out swinging and went up on North Branch 6-0 in the first match, and again in the second, but couldn’t hold on to their leads.
Oxford was definitely the better team, but rookie mistakes cost the matches, losing both games 21-16.
‘It was nice to have a look at them (North Branch) this early in the season. They are definitely our rivals and we will see them at the next two tournaments,? head coach Kristi McDevitt said.
Although the Ladycats came away empty-handed from the tournament, McDevitt was overall pleased with her squad’s performance.
‘You can’t expect too much at the first outing of the season,? McDevitt said, ‘We are still putting together all the pieces. This is the exact reason we go to these tournaments, they are great learning experiences.?
Junior Danielle Wicker had 19 kills and 22 digs. Senior captain Mykala Salquist had 13 kills and 8 blocks. Junior newcomer Kaitlin DuCharme was strong and steady in her first varsity appearance finishing with 12 kills, 3 blocks, and 12 digs.
Oxford will continue their tournament play at Goodrich this weekend.