The Lone Tree volleyball team went winless to open the season at the Iowa Valley quad, getting swept by Pekin and the hosting Tigers and losing 2-1 to rival Highland, starting the Kyle Holderness era 0-3.
Despite the losses, Holderness was happy with his team’s performance throughout the day.
“I think we did great, all things considered,” the Lion head coach said.
Near the end of the Lions’ first match against Iowa Valley, Harper Kuboushek went down holding her ankle, forcing her to miss the entirety of the Lions’ match against Highland.
“Harper’s presence, it’s not replaceable” Holderness said. He went on to explain that she was held out of the Highland match largely for precautionary purposes, “She said she felt fine, but I just wanted to keep her safe.”
While Kuboushek’s presence was missed at the net, sophomore Adi Parizek stepped up in her absence, highlighted when she delivered a 7-0 service run that kept the Lions in the second set.
“It was just one of those ‘wow’ moments,” Holderness said of Parizek’s performance off the bench. “She stepped in, she did her job, she did amazing. I didn’t want to take her out.”
That Highland match also included the first set win in over a year for the Lions, who won just a single set last year against Keota on August 25.
Finishing sets proved to be an issue for Lone Tree on Monday, as they were tied at eight points or beyond in nearly every set they played before allowing long service runs to do them in late in games.
The Lions are set to open SEISC play on Thursday as they travel to Packwood for a rematch with the Panthers.
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