Hunsberger gets 1,000th kill for Dock
A teary-eyed and overjoyed Lanae Hunsberger ,11, is embraced by her mother Connie and father Galen.
Lanae Hunsberger entered Thursday night’s senior night matchup with Radnor just four kills away from 1,000 for her career, but she didn’t know the exact number.
With her team leading 20-19 in the first set, Hunsberger recorded her fourth kill of the contest notching her 1,000th. Hunsberger ended the night 1,011 career kills as she guided the Pioneers to a 3-1 victory.
“None of them, not even Lanae knew what her count was,” Dock coach Trish Hoover said. “She didn’t ask and I didn’t tell and I didn’t want to put any added pressure on her.”
Reaching the 1,000 kill mark was the secondary goal on the night for Hunsberger as getting a win was at the top of the list. Possibly because of the milestone looming, or the energy of senior night but the Pioneers didn’t come out as sharp as they would have liked as they dropped the first set 25-22.
A teary-eyed and overjoyed Lanae Hunsberger is embraced by her mother Connie and father Galen.
“We were trying not to be too hyped about it because when we get like that we usually don’t play too well,” Hunsberger said. “We pulled it out in the end and that’s what matters.”
Over the next three games Dock started getting on the same page and started knocking down shots. Daphne Hunsberger led all Pioneers with 17 kills as Becca Timmerman chipped in with 11 kills as Molly hand facilitated the offense with 45 assists.
“We just knew we had to win this and we didn’t want to lose on senior night,” Hunsberger said. “I think Daphne really stepped it up and I love playing with these girls.”
Hunsberger played a crucial role in clinching the victory for the Pioneers. With Dock trialing 8-6 in the fourth game it was Hunsinger’s turn to serve. By the time Hunsberger was done serving the Pioneers were up 13-10 as she jump started a 10-4 Dock run.
“She is an absolute gamer and when the game is on the line I want nobody else to have the ball except her,” Hoover said. “She’s very competitive; she elevates the rest of the team to another level when their backs are against the wall.”
