RIVERSIDE

Even while hosting the opening rounds of the Southeast Iowa Super Conference Volleyball Tournament, Highland faced a challenging road toward the tourney finals.

Among the three opponents the Huskies faced Sept. 21 were West Burlington, which is ranked No. 15 in Iowa Class 2A, and Mediapolis, which had won two of three matches at the Holy Trinity Classic and had begun the season with five consecutive wins.

The Huskies lost to both West Burlington and Mediapolis in straight sets, but Highland head coach Shannon Copeman liked the battle she saw on the court.

“I have not seen them play this hard,” Copeman said. “Against Mepo and West Burlington, they played hard, they played fast, they played quick.”

The Huskies finished off the night with a sweeping 21-18, 21-12 victory against Pekin.

“It’s always good to end on a win,” Copeman said. “It makes me happy, for sure.”

Sarah Burton, a senior outside hitter, led the Huskies with 19 kills in the three matches and Loralei Lueck added 16 kills.

After losing 21-18, 21-15 in a hard-fought match against Mepo, the Huskies lost senior hitter Payton Brun to an ankle injury in the midst of the West Burlington match. The Huskies lost, 21-11, 21-10.

“Haley Sands went in with no issue,” Copeman said. “Very fortunate to have a team that we’re able to do that.”

West Burlington (25-4) did not lose a set in the entire tournament. After winning six consecutive games in pool play at Highland, the Falcons swept through the finals on Saturday in Burlington and defeated Holy Trinity, ranked No. 2 in Class 1A, by scores of 25-19, 25-18.

Highland (8-12) heads over to Hillcrest Academy on Thursday to face the Ravens (6-10) in a match that is likely to affect the 1A postseason tournament seedings. The Huskies host Lone Tree on Senior Night next Tuesday.