MARYSVILLE — The Tomahawk ladies fought with fervor, but only managed to win the second of four games against the Monroe Bearcats in their Sept. 11 match at home.

This was an anticipated reunion considering these were the two top teams in last year’s league. M-P’s senior setter Brittany Fitzmaurice came away with 37 assists, most of which were fed to all-conference returning teammate Emily Boerger who delivered 13 kills and senior transfer, Jenna Welsh who brought 11 kills. But it was not enough to defeat last year’s league winner.

The night began with Cali Cull serving an ace, which looked like a sign of things to come since the Tomahawks maintained control till the Bearcats tied them at 18 and went on to win the first game 25-19. This seemed to be the theme of the night, Marysville would outscore at the start of each game and Monroe would dominate the last half. Marysville managed to come away victorious in the second game winning 25-22. Monroe took games three and four winning 25-21 and 25-20.

“We had great defense, but unfortunately gave away too many points,” said head coach Shelly Johnson. She added that the team must eliminate all those errors and start hitting more consistently.

Johnson believes Monroe’s advantage comes from Kylin Munoz, a 6-1 senior who is ranked sixth in the nation. “When she gets back there and starts serving, she has the ability to control the game,” Johnson said. Munoz was also unstoppable at the net delivering 24 kills Thursday night.

Coach Johnson considers her Tomahawk ladies to be a balanced team that has a lot of different weapons and good senior leadership. “We have a long way to go,” said Johnson, but believes her team will improve through the season and hopefully go on to win the games that count.

This was the second game of the season. Marysville lost to Snohomish earlier in the week and they took on Kamiak Sept. 16 after The Globe/Times went to press.