Monday, Oct. 23, saw the end of their high school volleyball careers for seven South Loup student-athletes: Grace Bierman, Maggie Birkel, Delaney Rogers, Bryn Schwarz, Charli Vickers, Delaynie Laible, and Josie Reiff. The ladies went up against North Platte St. Pat’s in a C2 District 11 match-up and played their hearts out, ultimately falling just short of the victory.

The first set was an epic battle, with the scoring going back and forth throughout the set. It took extra points to decide the winner, with South Loup pulling out the win 26-24.

Set two saw the Lady Irish find their footing, while the Bobcats struggled a bit both offensively and defensively. St. Pat’s was able to claim the second 25-15.

However, the Bobcats were not giving up without a fight. The third set could have gone either way, but the Irish were able to put together a couple of rallies that moved them across the line to win the set 25-21 and force a fourth set.

Set four picked up where the third left off, with the two teams battling to keep their season alive. In the end, St. Pat’s just proved to be a little too much for the Bobcats on this day, and the Irish won the fourth 25-22.

The Lady Bobcats finished their season with an overall record of 11-19 and had some very hard-fought matches late in the season. After defeating Anselmo-Merna 3-1 in the MNAC tournament they took Ainsworth to five sets to finish the conference tourney.

Losing seven seniors leaves some big shoes to fill for the Lady Bobcats next year. Next year will see the return of juniors Greeley Hrupek, Riata Remund, and Anna Tullis to lead the Bobcats in 2024.

Stats v St. Pat’s:

Charli Pandorf - 2 digs, 1 Serve Receive Riata Remund- 7 Digs, 1 Assist Maggie Birkel- 2 Ace Serves, 3 Digs Delaney Rogers- 4 Kills, 6 Blocks, 3 Digs Bryn Schwarz- 5 Kills, 1 Ace Block, 18 Assists, 16 Digs Charli Vickers- 2 Ace Serves, 13 Kills, 7 Blocks, 10 Digs, 20 Serve Receptions Delaynie Laible- 3 Ace Serves, 3 Blocks, 9 Digs, 2 Assists, 12 Serve Receptions Josie Reiff- 17 Digs, 28 Serve Receptions