The Seward volleyball team finished fourth in its home invitational Sept. 18, going 2-2 on the day.
Seward beat South Sioux City 25-9, 25-12 and Omaha Mercy 25-16, 25-18 before falling to Wahoo 25-19, 25-20 and Oakland-Craig 25-21, 25-18.
Coach Tom Pallas said the Bluejays had a couple runs of unforced errors against Oakland-Craig.
“We can’t afford to beat ourselves,” he said. “We gave them too many points.”
In Seward’s wins over South Sioux City and Omaha Mercy, Pallas said the team did a better job limiting its unforced errors. Sophia Turek led the team with 12 kills against SSC and 11 against Omaha Mercy. Seward finished with eight ace serves against SSC, seven by Ellie Sagehorn.
Sagehorn and Keira Lliteras each had seven digs against South Sioux City, and Sagehorn and Turek had nine each against Omaha Mercy.
Pallas said unforced errors put the Jays in a hole against Wahoo and, while the team played well to get back into the match, more errors led to the loss.
“That’s been our M.O. against really good teams,” Pallas said.
The week started with a 25-9, 25-17, 25-15 win at Ralston Sept. 23. Gabi Cepek returned to the lineup and made her presence felt with 12 kills and six block assists.
The Jays beat Ralston Sept. 11 at Norris but didn’t play well in that match. This one was better, Pallas said.
The Jays (10-6) play at Columbus Thursday, Sept. 23, for the week’s only match. The team’s next match is Tuesday, Sept. 28, at home against Holdrege. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
