Please forgive the Morris and Plainfield Central volleyball teams if they are a bit tired Tuesday.

The two teams played a marathon first set Monday night, with the Wildcats coming away with a 32-30 victory. The momentum didn’t carry over, though, as Morris regrouped and won the second set 25-15, 25-13 to record the nonconference win.

Much of the credit for the Morris win goes to senior Tessa Shannon, who did not come off the floor until the final few points when her team had the match well in hand. Before that, though, she was a force at the net, delivering nine kills and two blocks, and in the back row, where she had eight digs and also served two aces. She was especially strong in the second set, when she had three kills to help Morris (7-3) move out from a 10-10 tie to a 17-13 lead. Then, she stepped to the service line and put the match away with seven straight service points, including an ace, to make it 24-13. She continued to shine in the early going of the third set, knocking home three kills to help her team build an 11-3 lead.

“We’ve struggled with the first set a lot this season,” Shannon said. “But we have been able to dig our way out of it. There is so much talent on this team. Having so many good players opens things up for everybody.

“It was much easier to be relaxed and just play when we had the lead instead of it going point for point. I am glad we got all the girls in tonight, too. Everyone works so hard all the time in practice, so it was nice to see everyone get a chance to play in a game tonight.”

Hannah Linn led Morris with 12 kills on the night, while Cami Pfeifer had 10 digs and Brooke Thorson had 16 assists.

Plainfield Central (2-8) jumped out to a 9-2 lead to start the first set, but Morris rallied and eventually took a 17-14 lead. Morris later led 23-20, but Plainfield Central would not relent. They fought off set point six times and, after Morris took a 30-29 lead, scored three straight points - the last a kill by Brooke Mouw - to claim the victory.

The second set was close early and was tied at 10 before Shannon took things over for Morris. A bright spot for the Wildcats was the play of freshman Abby Barrios, who had eight kills, and Jordan Siegmund, who led the team with nine.

“Consistency is definitely something we need to work on,” Plainfield Central coach Bob Richardson said. “We had some good moments. I think the first set was probably our best set of the year as far as serve receive. Everything worked together, and that was a good set for us.

“When we are playing in rhythm and going on instinct, we look really good. When we get to thinking too much, things break down and tend to snowball. If we can limit those runs to 2-3 points instead of 6-7, we’ll be in better shape. Abby Barrios had a great match, and she has the chance to be very special in the next few years. Jordan Siegmund played well, and so did our libero, Bella Ricketts.”

Morris coach Scott Howell made some lineup changes after the first set, including inserting Thorson at setter.

“This is the second Monday in a row where we have struggled to find any energy early,” Howell said. “Rosemary Misener [5 kills] carried us early before our other hitters got things figured out. It was really good to see Tessa step up. We wanted to have her play all around this year, and she has really done a great job.

“There was something about Hannah Linn in warmups that made me think she would have a big match. Brooke Thorson did a real nice job stepping in tonight. She brought a lot of energy and really has good chemistry with the hitters.”