MAYER – It’s pick your poison when you’re playing the Mayer Lutheran volleyball team. This time, it was sophomore Olivia Tjernagel who led the charge as Mayer Lutheran continued their dominant start to the season with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-20) sweep against Belle Plaine Thursday night.
It wasn’t easy though for the Crusaders as the Tigers made them earn it in each of the three sets. The Tigers (2-2, 2-2) held an early 13-9 lead in set one, but it was the Crusaders who took over the match with their height at the net and multiple weapons offensively.
Sophomore Olivia Tjernagel led the Crusaders to its sixth-straight sweep Thursday night.
“It’s so much fun,” Tjernagel said about having so many players on the court that can be a threat. “I’m excited to finish out this year with these girls and just keep playing.”
The Crusaders rallied in set one to tie it at 18, and that’s when Tjernagel and the Crusaders took over. Tjernagel had three kills, and combined on a block with Madison Hucky to help Crusaders finish the set on a 7-0 run to take a 1-0 lead against the Tigers.
Tjernagel and the Crusaders kept things rolling in set two as they snapped Belle Paine’s two-game winning streak coming into the night.
There’s no doubt the Crusaders come out with energy to play in each and every match, and a lot of that comes from pre-game rituals and feeding off each other on the court while trying to reach their highest potential.
“We have a pump up time before our games where we just listen to a bunch of music in the dark and it just really gets us going,” Tjernagel said. “Our coach always tells us to imagine ourselves doing everything to the best of your ability, so I just go through that before the game.”
Just because Tjernagel has found success early on in her high school career, including a state title, doesn’t mean she’s content with where she’s at. Being just a sophomore, Tjernagel has her own thing she wants to continue to work on and improve at.
“I’ve been working a lot on my serving just to improve that so I can add it to my front row as well,” Tjernagel said. “Also just having a faster offense and switching up my shots.”
With the win, the Crusaders have now won 18-straight sets to start the season. Although a sweep is nice, Tjernagel and the Crusaders are focusing on just making sure they are doing their best night in an night out.
“We just want to keep trying to do our best,” Tjernagel said. “I mean if we can keep our record at 6-0, 7-0 and whatever it gets to, that would be great.”
For a complete story on the Crusaders and their sweep, check out the September 22 edition of the Herald Journal.
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