Spartans netters capture Muskego's Silver Bracket

The Brookfield East's girls volleyball team saw Menomonee Falls rally to beat it in a Greater Metro Conference match on Aug. 28 and then won the Silver Bracket of the Muskego Invitational, taking fourth of nine teams.

East won the first game against Falls (25-22), but then the Indians swept the last three games (25-9, 25-12, 25-23) for the win.

Leading the Spartans stats attack were Olivia Lyster (8 kills), Jessa Hansen (13 assists), Petra Bryda (10 digs) and Taylor Wilkerson (2 blocks).

"We came out swinging tonight as the girls were ready to face a very tough Menomonee Falls team," Chris Polowy said. "The girls played well during the first set and were able to sneak out a win, though I could tell from the beginning that not all things were clicking.

"The second set proved that we lost all the momentum we gained from a hard-fought first set. Our serve receive and defense were just off tonight. Like true competitors, our girls didn't give up and gave Falls a run during the last set. Overall, we saw some great things and some things we'll need to improve on."

The Spartans won the Silver Bracket (3-1) on Saturday and finished fourth out of nine teams at the Muskego Invitational.

The Spartans are now 13-3 overall.

Leading in the stats sheet were Olivia Lyster (24 kills, 27 digs), Petra Bryda (34 assists, 6 aces), Jessa Hansen (23 assists), Erika Hansen (31 digs), Haley Massa (6 aces) and Taylor Wilkerson (5 blocks).

East beat Nicolet to win the Silver Championship (17-25, 25-23, 15-12).

In the first round they lost to Burlington (25-9, 25-15) and then beat Greenfield (25-17, 25-22) and West Allis Hale (25-19, 25-5).

"This team continues to impress and sometimes surprise us," Polowy said. "We're not surprised by their talents because that is something we knew we had going into this season. Yet, we're surprised at how this team responds to adversity considering their age and lack of varsity experience."

The Spartans got a tough draw in the first match of the day taking on the No. 1 team in the state and one of the top teams in the country (Burlington).

"This was a new experience for our girls and that affected their confidence and performance," Polowy said. "We expected a tighter match, but our girls were not mentally ready to take on a team of this caliber."

Polowy thought his team might be sluggish against Greenfield, but the Spartans proved that wrong taking the match in two sets. Lyster led the way with 11 kills and 10 digs.

"We have a bunch of kids that thrive under pressure, which will do us well as we move forward," Polowy said. "This team wants to be recognized as a top team in the area and so far they have done just that."