After a tough first three games, and a tough start against Rainier on the road Monday night, the Napavine volleyball team fought back and picked up its first win of the season with a four set win (15-25, 25-22, 26-24, 25-17) over the Mountaineers.
“They picked it up, they wanted to win,” coach Monica Dailey said. “We needed this confidence booster. They listened really well tonight.”
After a slew of serve-receive issues in the first set led to a bad loss, the Tigers (1-3, 0-1 in league) flipped the script and got into a rhythm, controlling the battle at the net to win in four.
Avery Schutz was nearly perfect from behind the service line, going 29 for 30 with seven aces and 10 assists. While Schutz served up a great game, Keira O’Neill led the charge in the front, hitting 14 kills and recording seven block kills. In the back, Emily Kang and Nikki Ahmann bounced back after a tough first set to dig up a combined 32 balls.
“We played really smart at the net, which is helpful,” Dailey said. “They don’t get rattled, they are fighters and they want to win.”
It's still early in the season, but Dailey has been impressed with how her young group has responded to adversity this season. Monday night’s result is just a consequence of that response.
The Tigers have a tough week, after Monday night’s road contest in Rainier, they’ll head to Wahkiakum on Tuesday, and round out the week with a road contest in Toutle Lake.
The Mountaineers will look to bounce back against Toledo on the road Tuesday.
