T-Birds set to tango with Warriors
By Pete Watson/News Republic Sports
Gabe Sederberg is looking to the future.
But at the same time the second-year Baraboo Thunderbirds volleyball coach isn’t overlooking the present.
With the No. 15 seeded T-Birds (2-15) taking on the second-seeded Waunakee Warriors (15-5) tonight in Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Division I regional semifinal action, Sederberg sees the matchup as a chance for the young T-Birds to impact the future.
"I think we’re approaching this game as a big opportunity," Sederberg said. "We have some big goals down the road and Waunakee is the team that we have to hurdle at some point to reach those goals."
Baraboo, a team with just two seniors, was swept twice in three games by Waunakee in the regular season. But if BHS puts together a near-perfect match in the third meeting the results could be far different
"We feel like we have a good chance to win if everything goes right for us," Sederberg said. "We’re at a point where mistakes hurt us a lot more than they hurt them. If we can avoid those mistakes, we can compete with them."
The majority the Warrior’s dominance this season can be attributed to its above average front row.
Against Baraboo on Oct. 13, senior outside hitter Lacey Adler (5-foot-10) and junior Hailie Ripley (5-10) combined for 26 kills.
"They’re big and they don’t make mistakes," Sederberg said of WHS’s offense.
The T-Birds will have to rely on their ability to answer.
"We just have to do well with our serve receive and make sure we get swings on every hit," Sederberg said. Our setters (Kelsey Jensen and Lexi Jones) have been good all year so if we can get the ball up to them and get our front row players swinging, we’ll hang with them."
Baraboo has been blessed by offensive surges and cursed by long scoring droughts in many of its matches this season. Finding a rhythm and overcoming any setbacks will go a long ways in determining the team’s success against Waunakee.
"We go through spurts sometimes in games, and if we can turn that into a full effort for 25 points through the whole match we’ll be fine," Sederberg said. "We’ll make mistakes, but hopefully move on to the next point and stay in sync."