Weyauwega-Fremont and Wittenberg-Birnamwood were the top two volleyball teams this season in the Central Wisconsin 8 Conference.
Both teams went into the final CWC-8 match with 6-0 records and W-F came out on top. The Indians also defeated the Chargers Oct. 9 in the conference tournament championship match to win the CWC-8 title outright.
W-F took control of the match with 25-21 and 25-23 wins in the first two games, but the visitors answered with a pair of 25-20 wins to force a fifth game, which went to the Indians 15-13.
“Tuesday’s match against Wittenberg was big for everyone,” coach Rena Tomaszewski said. “The girls knew they were guaranteed a conference championship, but were determined to take sole possession of the title. Two of their goals for the season were to bring the title back to Weyauwega and get the ’12 on the banner.
“These kids also want that target on their back,” she added. “They thrive on competition and fight tooth and nail just to be the team that everybody else wants to beat. Taking sole ownership is very sweet, especially for the 10 seniors. This group showed a tremendous amount of character and poise, which has been their strength all season.”
Team leaders for the Indians included Teal Tomaszewski (29 digs, 10 service points); Bailey Kapitzke (25 digs, 14 kills, 13 service points); Dani Austreng (19 digs, 13 kills); Mariah Hulbert (22 assists); Kelsey Akey (15 assists); Maggie Knecht and Morgan Wilson (five block kills); and Megan Young (four block kills).
“Wittenberg played much better against us here than they did when we were there last week,” Tomaszewski said. “They had a better match against us, which in a way is helping us to prepare for the regional playoffs. We could likely meet up with No. 1 seed Oconto and I believe they are much like Wittenberg on a really good day.”
The Indians are the No. 2 seed in the Division 3 Marathon Sectional. W-F opened tournament play Oct. 16 by hosting No. 15 Crivitz. If W-F won that match, the Indians would host No. 7 Peshtigo or No. 10 Crandon at 7 tonight (Thursday, Oct. 18) in a regional semifinal. The winner of that match would play for a regional championship Saturday, Oct. 20.
The Indians have had a solid fan base all season long, according to Tomaszewski.
“We have some of the best fans around,” she said. “Our student section has really helped put the energy into the gym this season, home and away. We’ve had some great crowds and the volleyball team wants to be sure to thank everyone for their attendance and totally motivating cheering during our matches.”