Escanaba junior Susie Moberg (11) winds up to deliver a kill during a match against Iron Mountain on Sept. 30, 2024 at Escanaba High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg Daily Press)

ESCANABA –Fresh off six matches in one day on Saturday, Escanaba volleyball returned to its home floor to host Iron Mountain on Monday.

The Eskymoes proved why they are one of the top teams in the U.P., earning a 25-14, 25-23, 25-15 win.

“The girls were still pretty stoked from (Saturday) and ready to play,” Esky coach Beverly Ziebell said. “We got everybody in. They all did good. We shared the kills.”

After a dominating first set where Esky trailed at 0-1 and 1-2, set two saw the Mountaineers push back. IM took control early and often in the second stanza, and despite several Eskymo flurries the Mountaineers stayed ahead. Esky pulled within one point five times before 22-17.

Then IM hit the ball four times, allowing Esky junior harlee Coolman to drop back to the service line. While the Eskymos’ libero is more than capable of creating a spark, it wasn’t exactly her who came up.

It was Landry Bray. She came through with three kills on the front line as part of a 5-0 push which tied the frame at 22.

Both teams exchanged miscues to tie everything up at 23. But IM’s Macy Linsenbigler was caught with her foot over the center line and the orange and black duo of Bray and Grayson LaMarche got their paws on an IM kill attempt, blocking the ball for the 25th point ti win set two.

Three of Bray’s four kills on the night came in the pivotal moments of set two.

“She’s my versatile player. Sometimes I play her at middle (blocker), sometimes I’ll play her left (side hitter) because she has a great swing,” Ziebell said of Bray. “She’s focused. We just got to get more confidence in her, and she’s starting to come around really well.”

After four ties and a lead change set three was evened out at 7-7. Esky then rattled off six-straight points, including a trio of aces from Coolman for a 13-7 advantage. The Mountaineers pulled within five points to trail 13-8, but the Eskymos proved to be too much, claiming 12 of the set’s final 19 points for the win.

For Iron Mountain, Monday’s match didn’t have any conference or playoff implications. Instead, it gave coach Jeanna Newberry an opportunity to try out new offensive and defensive sets in game action.

“I was trying to get them more around the ball knowing that Escanaba was going to come with these big hits. So I was trying to get my defense to corral around it” Newberry said. “Little miscommunication throughout the games. But I really liked what I saw from what I was implementing into the system today. We only practiced it yesterday.”

It also gave the Mountaineers an opportunity to face a larger school before battling crosstown rival Kingsford on Thursday.

“We know we’re gearing up to some big games coming up from now until districts. When we come up against these bigger schools, we know we’re going to get challenged quite a bit,” Newberry said. “I’m very proud of their defensive effort tonight. The scores don’t mean so much as much as their effort does.”

Coolman finished with 24 digs, four aces and two kills. Clara Braun added 12 digs, 11 assists, a kill and an ace. Katey Lamb produced five kills, two aces and two digs. Sophie Lehto, in her first match back since Sept. 12, added an assist. Lily Nelson finished five kills and three digs. Susie Moberg earned a team-best 10 kills and five blocks. Addison Noblet added a kill. Mary Kate Tourangeau earned a team-best 12 helpers to go with eight digs and a pair of aces. Brooklyn Beauchamp contributed four digs and an assist. Bet Montal tallied a trio of kills, assists and digs. Breleigh Reinhart had five digs. LaMarche accumulated eight kills, eight digs and a pair of blocks. Ava Stalboerger added a kill and an assist.

The Eskymos return to action for their home tournament at 9 a.m. Saturday.