By ELIOT SILL

Staff writer

After his first full Saturday tournament as head coach of Marion High School volleyball, Brady Hudson was arguably more tired than his players.

“I want to take a nap right now,” he said after his team’s fifth and final win of the day. “Like, I’m ready for bed.”

He said he was surprised how emotionally draining it was from the sideline. Hudson has never coached before.

It would have been hard to tell the competition was emotionally grating on Hudson and his team, however. Even in the final game of the championship match, after overcoming a seven-point deficit to tie the set, the first thing Hudson said in a timeout made his players laugh.

“When we were cheering everybody up and being goofy, that’s when we were playing our game,” Hudson said. “That’s when we were playing our best.”

Marion was able to play its best due in large part to the return of one of its better standouts, junior setter Kirsten Hansen. Hansen and her sister Kourtney, a freshman, were instrumental in the team’s performance.

“Having both the Hansen girls on the court? That’s a threat,” Hudson said. “They just know the game so well, they know where to place the ball, what holes are open, and they also listen to each other very well.”

Senior Julia Hall was also a standout performer. Along with Hansen, Hall earned all-tournament honors.

The team started the day with a 25-5, 25-4 win over Life Prep Academy, in what was a tuneup performance for the Warriors. Hudson used that game as a test run for the elder Hansen, who tore an ACL last year during basketball season.

“She proved herself in that game,” Hudson said. “She got to the balls, she got the set. It was good.”

Sophomores Shelby Flavus and Marissa Jacobson also made their impact felt, along with senior Sam Davies.

The five wins in the tournament brought Marion’s record to 7-0, as they won both games at a season-opening triangular at home Sept. 9.

Their record received its first blemish with a 13-25, 9-25 loss to Trinity Hutchinson on Tuesday at the Bennington Triangular. The loss came after Marion earned its eighth win by beating Bennington 25-11, 25-15.

Hudson said the loss to Trinity Hutchinson was “pretty brutal.”

“We didn’t play as well as we could have, which I think the girls are more upset about than the loss itself,” he said.

The Warriors sit at 8-1 and will host the Marion Spikefest at 9 a.m. on Saturday.