VJHS volleyball opens season

The Vandalia seventh-grade volleyball team opened its season by finishing seventh at the Edwardsville Lincoln Tournament on Saturday.

Vandalia was 0-3 in pool play, but defeated Southwestern in the seventh-place match, 19-25, 25-21, 15-10.

Its opponents in pool play were:

•Edwardsville Liberty: 16-25, 22-25
•St. Norbert: 15-25, 13-25
•Lovejoy: 13-25, 21-25

Mindy Ritchey paced the Vandals with 25 service points and six service aces. Faye Etcheson had nine service points and five service aces.

Karlie Bright had six service points, two service aces and scored the winning points in both sets against Southwestern.

On Tuesday, both the seventh- and eighth-grade teams defeated Altamont.

The seventh-graders won, 25-16, 25-6, on the strength of its serving. The team recorded 24 service aces, with Ritchey leading the team with nine. Bright, Makayla Tinker and Rylee Wollerman each contributed four.

The eighth-graders won, 25-20, 25-11. Team leaders were:

•Jessica Sullens – 10 points, one kill, one service ace
•Mercedes Reynolds – Nine points, four service aces, one kill
•Ali Sasse – Five points and one ace
•Jessica Booker – Five points and two aces
•Kadi Metzger – Six kills and two blocks
•Johanna Walton – Two kills, one block and one tip kill

Up next for the Vandals is a home match against Mulberry Grove on Thursday at 6 p.m.