by Danika Juhl, GHS Blue Ink and staff reports
Entering into fall with a great start, Garretson Blue Dragons sports are all in full swing. Each of them have had different problems but are finding ways to overcome them and keep moving forward.
FOOTBALL
Football (3-2) played Irene (0-4) Friday and played Canistota (3-2) the week before. While Garretson held a 23-point lead at one point in the game, Canistota kept picking at their deficit and found a way to tie the game at 50-50, pushing it to overtime.
Garretson had the first chance to put the pressure on but was unable to punch it into the goal.
On the third down during Canistota’s four-down turn, they found the back of the endzone, securing a 56-50 victory over the Blue Dragons.
Going into the second half of the football season, senior quarterback Dylan Kindt highlighted that while they seem to be able to move the ball down field on offense really well, there is more that needs to be done.
“We need to come out in the third quarter; that’s for sure,” he said. However, Kindt also noted that the team needs to “make some more plays and really step it up on our defense.”
The Blue Dragons traveled to Irene-Wakonda on Friday and sent the Eagles to the ground, winning 35-14. This week is a bye week for the team, and they'll take on the Howard Tigers next Friday, Oct 8 on the home turf.
SOCCER
Soccer had a home game against Groton on Saturday, Dakota Valley on Tuesday, September 21, and Sioux Falls Christian Thursday, September 23.
While the Blue Dragon soccer team played close, aggressive games, they were unable to secure a victory. The team tied against Groton, with neither team scoring any goals.
“I feel like everyone played good because we make a good team,” stated sophomore Adi Fink. However, Fink noted that the team does make some mistakes and has room for improvement. “We shouldn’t pass around the 18 yard box and need to shoot more on frame.”
In the game versus Sioux Falls Christian, the Blue Dragons were able to keep SFC balls out of the back of the net during the first half. The Blue Dragons scored one goal during the second half. Unfortunately, SFC gathered two points and ended the game at 1-2.
Soccer finished their regular season on Thursday with a record of 2-9-1, falling just short of the state playoffs.
VOLLEYBALL
The Blue Dragons volleyball team (13- 1) had a torrid pace last week, playing three out of four days. They opened at home against Adrian on Monday, then went to Dell Rapids on Tuesday, and to Chester on Thursday.
Garretson was able to secure wins in all three games, pulling out a tense five-set victory over Dell Rapids and avenging their one loss on the season against Chester in three straight sets.
A team effort was needed for all three wins last week. Senior Lily Ranschau noted the importance of being ready for anything, even a team that is more competitive than expected.
“What surprised me the most from the Dells game was probably how well they performed; I can speak for most of my team that we weren’t expecting them to be as good as they were.”
But games like that make a team better as they learn how to make changes on the fly.
“The adjustments I made personally for the game going into that second match was my mindset, I knew in my head that I was better than that and I just convinced myself to be confident,” explained Ranschau. She furthered, “The team overall needs to work on our serving and confidence in that. I feel like we know how to work as a team, but just a few bad mistakes get us in a deep hole.” Those adjustments from the Dell Rapids game transferred over to Chester on Thursday as the girls came in confidently, worked as a team, and improved their serving efforts on their way to a three-set sweep of the Fliers.
Garretson volleyball was next in action on Tuesday at Alcester-Hudson (results unavailable at press time) and plays against Parker at home tonight (Thursday) starting at 6:00 p.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
Cross Country went to Dell Rapids on Wednesday, September 21.
MaKayla Heesch and Sam Schleuter were the lone varsity runners as other GHS harriers deal with injuries. They came in with solid times while still leaving room for improvement. Heesch placed 25th with a time of 23:36.15, and Schleuter was 42nd with a time of 21:20.57.
Erin Steen led the JV effort placing 16th with a time of 20:32.09. Eliza Potter, Claire Creppelle, and Sarah Welch also gathered points, placing Garretson JV in 4th overall.
They headed to Volga on Tuesday for the Sioux Valley Invite (results unavailable at press time) and are competing again today (Thursday) in Lennox at the final regular meet of the season. The Big East Conference meet will be on Thursday, October 7.
