Pleasant Plains steals victory from
Mount Pulaski
[September 16, 2025]
The Mount Pulaski Toppers were so close to getting a win over
Class 2A Pleasant Plains on Monday night.
The Cardinals entered the game in Mount Pulaski with a 7-6 record
while the Toppers had a 7-4 record coming into the match.
Mount Pulaski was able to take set one 25-19 but dropped sets two
and three 23-25 and 23-25.
Set two saw the Cardinals stretch the lead to 15-12 at one point.
Later that lead grew to 18-13. Mount Pulaski was able to close the
gap to 19-18 with Karsyn Wilham at the service line. Following a
timeout by Pleasant Plains, the Toppers not only tied the game on a
kill by Olivia Smith but they also took a 20-19 lead on another
immediate kill by Smith. She meant business on both of them as she
hammered them into the block by the Cardinals. Pleasant Plains then
went ahead by two points but the Toppers hung tough and took a 23-22
lead after a double-hit was called on the Cardinals. Three
consecutive errors by Mount Pulaski ended set two in favor of the
Cardinals 25-23.
Set three was in Mount Pulaski’s favor to start, with the score 6-2.
The Cardinals fought back to take a 7-6 lead. Blocks by Mount
Pulaski and an ace by Elayna Marten put the Toppers back in front
9-7. After a huge kill by Smith the Toppers clung to an 11-9 lead.
The two teams continued to exchange points, keeping the game very
close. There would be seven more ties in the set before a winner was
crowned. The most thrilling moment for MP fans was when Piper Tyson
threw down a kill from the middle that ended a really long volley.
Tyson’s hit was the play of the night for Mount Pulaski, tying the
set 19-19. Smith sent another kill ricocheting off the block and
this would put Mount Pulaski up 20-19. After an ace by Ella Martin,
the Toppers thought they had a 21-19 lead, but it would be
determined that Mount Pulaski was out of rotation. This set the
score back to 20-20. After the two teams traded long serves, the
Cardinals took the lead on a kill by senior Willow Milkint.
[to top of second column] |
Still the Toppers had a chance with a 22-22 tie after the Cardinals
hit the ball out of bounds. A tip by the Cardinals landed in no
man’s land in Topper territory and that gave the slight edge to
Pleasant Plains. Then a kill gave the Cardinals a 24-22 lead. After
a timeout, Smith got one more kill for Mount Pulaski for a point and
it was definitely hit with a ton of force. But Milkint got a
fantastic swing on the ball from the middle again and her kill ended
the set in their favor, 25-23.
The loss was a crushing blow to the Toppers, but nonetheless an
incredible effort by Mount Pulaski.
Audrey Cooper did her best keeping the ball alive with 19 digs. She
also had an ace.
Olivia Smith led the team with 10 kills and she also had 8 digs and
an ace.
Elayna Marten was all over the court with 7 kills, 7 digs and an
ace.
Ella Martin had 3 kills and 3 aces.
Aly Murphy guided the offense with 22 assists.
Karsyn Wilham added an ace.
Mount Pulaski will play at Delavan on Thursday night. The JV game is
scheduled for 6:00 p.m. The Varsity game will start at 7:00 p.m.
[Teena Lowery]
|
