Lady Spartan JV Volleyball - Coach Chris Kelly
Click HERE for 2011 Volleyball Master Schedule
Stratford Lady Spartans
JV Volleyball
2011 Roster
Click HERE for a printable roster
| Number | Name |
| 1 | Ashton Cabla |
| 2 | Allison Utz |
| 3 | SarahFinkelstein |
| 5 | Charlotte Stevens |
| 6 | Caroline Baerg |
| 7 | Meredith Burch |
| 8 | Jennifer Swanson |
| 9 | Sophie Moll |
| 11 | Shawn Taylor |
| 12 | Erin Higginbotham |
| 13 | Samantha Vanston |
| 15 | Katy Gallion |
| 17 | Elyse Stieber |
| 20 | Tracee Greenwood |
| 21 | Ashley Fritcher |
JV Volleyball vs. Spring Woods
October 14, 2011
District Record 9-2
Homecoming 2011 proved victorious for the JV, as we improved our district record to 9 wins, 2 losses. Game 1 got off to a slow start with too many service errors and a few hitting misses, but Stratford never trailed and won on a 5 point serving run by Ashton Cabla. The kill leaders for Game 1 were Tracee Greenwood and Katy Gallion with 4 each. Final Score 25:17
Game 2 was another strong performance, with few errors. Shawn Taylor and Charlotte Stevens served for a combined 10 unanswered points, and Jennifer Swanson contributed another 3 service points. Meredith Burch had a couple of great back-row hits that went unreturned, and Erin Higginbotham came up with a big dig and a block to add to the score. To their credit, Spring Woods fought to the bitter end and they have a couple of impressive players, especially at outside and libero. Final Score 25:10
JV Volleyball vs. Brenham
October 11, 2011
District Record 8-2
The Lady Spartans traveled to Brenham Tuesday, October 11th for a second meeting with the Brenham Cubettes. Stratford won this match in two games, increasing our district record to 8 - 2. This was the second win for the JV against Brenham this year - way to go, ladies! (This writer did not attend the match, so the commentary is rather slim).
JV Volleyball vs. Magnolia
October 7, 2011
District Record 7-2
More 'dogs' traveled to Stratford when we hosted the Magnolia Bulldogs on Friday, October 7th. Game 1 was a great match, the score going back and forth with neither team dominating. Key points came when Alison Utz tied it at 25-all, followed by Shaw Taylor's tie at 26-all. Ashley Fritcher provided a kill to advance to 27-26, and Charlotte Stevens had a KILL for the winning point at 28-26. Hearts were pounding in the stands, for sure!
Game 2 was another great match-up. The Lady Spartans started out STRONG with a 7-point serving run by Alison Utz. Unfortunately, Stratford saw its 9-2 lead evaporate quickly. The Lady Spartans continued to battle, and the tide seemed to turn back to Stratford's favor at point 18-16 with another of Jennifer Swanson's "surprise" pop-overs. Ashley Fritcher's 4 kills combined with Shawn Taylor's 7 kills and 2 aces saw Stratford dominate the game at 24-17. A perfect kill by Charlotte Stevens closed out the game at 25-17 - her 2nd winning point in a row!
A well-deserved win, and the continuation of a strong volleyball season for the JV!
JV Volleyball vs. Waller
October 4, 2011
District Record 6-2
The match against the Waller Bulldogs on Tuesday was an easy victory for the Lady Spartans - home court advantage? Points were evenly distributed between all players. A few notable plays were Ashley Fritcher tangling with the net (Ashley won the point!), two line kills by Shawn Taylor, and Katy Gallion's ace in Game 2 for the winning point. Final Score 25:10, 25:13
JV Volleyball vs. Northbrook
September 30, 2011
District Record 5-2
The Raiders put up a fight Friday afternoon, holding their own against the Lady Spartans in both games; however the Lady Spartans prevailed 25:13, 25:15. The biggest problem faced by both teams was the sun, which streamed in through very attractive but poorly designed glass block windows along the top of the gym. Sunglasses should have been required equipment! Ashley Fritcher was the point leader in Game 1 with 9 service points, and Alison Utz and Tracee Greenwood had 3 kills each. In Game 2, points were well distributed, including several service points each by Elise' Steiber and Charlotte Stevens, and 2 kills by Erin Higginbotham.
JV Volleyball - SBISD Tournament
September 29, 2011 & October 1, 2011
Thursday, 9/29: The Lady Spartans started out strong in Match 1 against Morton Ranch, winning 24:14 in Game 1. Game 2, however, saw a fired-up Morton Ranch team doing everything they could to pull out a win. Stratford trailed the entire game until Jennifer Swanson tied us at 21-all with one of her famous "pop-overs". Meredith Burch had a couple of DEEP digs at point 22 and 23 to finally take the lead 23:22. Game 2 and the match win came on an unreturned kill by Alison Utz at point 25.
Match 2 against Cinco Ranch was a terrific challenge for both teams, as they split games 1 and 2. Stratford won Game 1, 25:23. The highlight of Game 1 came when Morton Ranch returned a ball that Meredith Burch was able to keep in play AFTER it went THRU the basketball goal. Cinco Ranch won Game 2, 16:25, after a series of errors by the Lady Spartans. In Game 3, both teams fought to the bitter end. An amazing save by Meredith Burch at 13:14 was followed by a kill by Alison Utz at 14 all, then a kill by Jennifer Swanson to tie it again at 15 all. Stratford lost Game 3 and the match at 15:17, but a valiant effort was made by all players!
Saturday, 10/01: Match 3 of the tournament commenced at 8:00 am Saturday morning at Memorial High School when the Lady Spartans took on Clear Lake. Clear Lake came out strong in Game 1, winning 21:25. Game 2 was a mirror image and the Lady Spartans won 25:21; Sarah Finkelstein had a very nice hit to the corner at point 25. Game 3 was a quick 15:9 win for Stratford after being up initially at 7:0, thanks to a 7-point serving run by Jennifer Swanson. This win put us in the championship game at 11:00 against Jersey Village.
Match 4 of the tournament proved a quick defeat of the JV Falcons. Game 1 ended 25:7 and included 9 serving points by Charlotte Stevens. Game 2 ended 25:12, spurred on by Katy Gallion's 7-point serving run and closed out at point 25 by Caroline Baerg's kill.
JV Volleyball vs. Magnolia West
September 27, 2011
District Record 4-2
On Tuesday, 9/27, Stratford hosted Magnolia West and posted an easy 2-game victory 25:12, 25:9. Points were distributed across all players, and the team did a great job of limiting errors.
JV Volleyball - Ft. Bend Tournament
September 24, 2011
JV traveled to Elkins High School Saturday morning for the Fort Bend Tournament. Match 1 was against the host team, Elkins, and the girls breezed to an easy victory - 25:7 and 25:17. Ashley Fritcher, Allison Utz and Shawn Taylor were the point winners of this match.
Match 2 provided a bit more drama as the Lady Spartans took on Travis for a tough match. After a 25:22 win in Game 1, Game 2 ended 21:25, which meant a Game 3. Game 3 was an easy victory at 15:7, closed out at point 15 by Allison Utz.
Match 3 for the tournament championship was against Austin High. While they didn't have the height of the Lady Spartans, they sure had the scrappiness to stay with Stratford point-for-point. Game 1 was a tough one, with Stratford winning 25:23 after being down 3:11 at one point. A soft pop-over hit by Ashley Fritcher sealed the win at point 25.
Game 2 was a 180' change, as Austin came out STRONG and whipped us 14:25. We couldn't seem to get a break in the game, as serves were either in the net or out, calls for double-hits were routine, and passes went awry.
JV Volleyball vs. Montgomery
September 23, 2011
District Record 3-2
Montgomery traveled to Stratford America on Friday, September 23rd. The Lady Spartans were off to a great start, winning Game 1 easily. Game 2 was quite a different story, as the Bears and Lady Spartans battled each point, with the Bears ultimately prevailing. Game 3 was another nail-biter, as both sides of the net fought for each point. Unfortunately for the Lady Spartans, the net height seemed to increase in Game 3 as serves and hits into the net proved to be our downfall.
JV Volleyball vs. Spring Woods
September 20, 2011
District Record 3-1
The Lady Tigers hosted the Lady Spartans on Tuesday, 9/20. Stratford won both games handily, 25:5 and 25:9. The highlights of the match came in Game 2, when Elise' Steiber had a 15-point serving run, and the fans enjoyed a nail-biting rally eventually won by Spring Woods.
JV Volleyball vs. Brenham
September 16, 2011
District Record 2-1
After dropping a district game to Magnolia, and doing poorly on Day 1 of the Klein tournament, all eyes were on the Lady Spartans when we hosted Brenham last Friday night - the fans were well rewarded! Stratford came on strong and never looked back.
In Game 1, Allison Utz and Jennifer Swanson teamed up for a number of points, and Jennifer again proved her setting skills are bar none when she was able to save a ball by reaching behind her JUST over the net, tipping it to Shawn Taylor, who won the point. Samantha Vanston closed out the 25:10 win with a picture-perfect hit to the back corner.
Game 2 also ended with a 25:10 victory for the Lady Spartans. Tracee Greenwood and Katy Gallion had some especially deep digs, and Charlotte Stevens was the kill leader, helped along by Ashley Fritcher and Erin Higginbotham. Jennifer Swanson's tricky little pop-overs continued to find the floor on the other side of the net. Sarah Finkelstein provided the winning point after being hit HARD in the face on point 22 (ouch!). Overall, the JV played much better as a team with all players contributing to the wins. The errors in our games v. Brenham were few and far between, with almost zero dropped balls and only one serve into the net. Keep up the great work, Ladies!
JV Volleyball - Klein Tournament
September 15, 2011 & September 17, 2011
On Thursday, 9/15, Stratford's JV traveled to Klein High School for Day 1 of a two day tourney. They split their first two matches on Thursday: beating Nimitz High School 25:17 and 25:14, and losing 21:25 and 21:25 v. Tomball Memorial. This resulted in the Lady Spartan's moving into the consolation bracket for Day 2. Comments from parents who attended Day 1 of the tourney indicate the MVP award goes to Ashton Cabla - way to go, Ashton!
Day 2 of the tournament was quite a different story - perhaps the change in venue to Klein Oak High School was our good luck charm. Match 1 v. Tomball High saw the Lady Spartans prevail, 25:21 and 25:13. Ashley Fritcher and Tracee Greenwood were the kill leaders, followed by Allison Utz and Samantha Vanston.
In Match 2, the excitement continued. After a 25:18 Stratford win in the first game, the lights went out - literally! 45 minutes later, both teams re-took the court to play what was one of the most exciting games of the Season. Looking more like a tumbling class than a volleyball game, girls on both sides of the court showed off their diving, rolling, and running skills to save balls and points. Great blocking by Caroline Baerg, Ashley Fritcher and Charlotte Stevens along with Meredith Burch's 7 point serving run in Game 2 solidified the Lady Spartan's win.
JV brought back a trophy for their efforts, winning the Consolation bracket!
JV Volleyball vs. Magnolia
September 13, 2011
District record: 1 - 1
On Tuesday, September 13th, the Lady Spartans traveled to Magnolia High School to play the Lady Bulldogs. We were greeted by Magnolia fans which included Captain America, a Gorilla, a Banana and a Hotdog.
The Lady Spartans started out strong against the Lady Bulldogs, winning Game 1 handily. Led by a strong serving rally from Tracee Greenwood, the Lady Spartans took a 10:1 lead, and Freshman Charlotte Stevens had a HUGE kill to score the winning point at 25:13. Games 2 and 3 were a bit different, unfortunately. In Game 2, our blocking was strong, but even sneaky pop-overs by Jennifer Swanson and 3 lovely cross-court hits by Sophie Moll weren't enough to overcome too many serving errors, and the Lady Spartans lost 21:25.
Game 3 saw the Magnolia Lady Bulldogs come "unleashed" as the Lady Spartans trailed the entire game. Serves in the net, hits out of bounds, missed blocks, etc. contributed to the 12:25 loss. Even though the girls were way behind most of Game 3, they never gave up and continued to go after every ball. For that, they should be proud.
JV has a very busy week and lots of opportunity to work on specific skills. In addition to Tuesday's match vs. Magnolia, we travel to Klein High on Thursday for a tournament, host Brenham on Friday, and head out to Klein Oak on Saturday morning for the 2nd day of the Klein tourney.
GO LADY SPARTANS!!!
JV Volleyball vs. Waller
September 9, 2011
The JV girls traveled to Waller (with smoke looming in the distance from recent fires) on Friday, September 9th to take on the Bulldogs for our first district game of the season. The first game was all Stratford 25, Waller 14; Waller then picked up their play to end up winning the game 25-20; but the Spartans were victorious in the end winning the final game and match 25-13.
