The Mossyrock volleyball team entered W.F. West on Thursday with a few goals in mind.
Winning their match against the Bearcats, of course, was goal number one. But coach Alex Nelson also said that they were hoping to see more progress on several things they have been working on in practice.
After the Vikings (5-2, 4-0 1B Columbia Valley) swept the Bearcats (0-9, 0-5 2A EvCo) handily for their fourth straight win on Thursday, winning 25-15, 25-18, 25-9, Nelson was pleased with how the team answered the bell.
“Everyone on the floor was contributing all night long,” Nelson said.
The Bearcats defense struggled against a balanced Viking offense, one that consistently mixed which zones to attack.
They also altered between hitting the ball over on the second and third hit. Setter Erin Cournyer read the defense throughout, deciding to either dump the ball in or set it for a teammate.
On several occasions, Cournyer dumped in right in the middle of the Bearcat defense, leaving all six defenders diving towards each other.
“She’s looking for what we call that campfire (defense),” Nelson said. “And she hit that well. But she also went down the line deep, which is hard to do.”
Cournyer was stellar as both a setter and an outside hitter on Thursday, collecting 14 assists, 13 kills and three digs.
“She’s just very talented,” Nelson said. “Just excellent. You want her everywhere.”
While Cournyer led the way offensively, she certainly wasn’t the only one having success. Renzy Marshall tallied seven kills, Chesney Schultz had four, and Delaney Marshall dished out six assists.
Nelson says that they were focused on more precise, accurate hits, as opposed to just swinging as hard as they could.
“Eliminating the errors … we did a great job of that tonight,” Nelson said. “We were swinging hard when we were supposed to and then just being smart.”
The Vikings also outplayed the Bearcats in the service department, both in sending them over the net and receiving them defensively.
Adyson Barrows tallied six aces, a couple coming on shorter serves, something Nelson said she hasn’t always been comfortable with over the early course of the season.
“Adyson served like crazy tonight,” Nelson said. “They’re getting comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
Nelson also made sure to applaud Schultz, who “had a great all-around night.” In addition to her four kills, had five digs and four blocks.
The Vikings will look to push their winning streak to five on Monday, when they’ll host Three Rivers Christian. The Bearcats’ quest for their first win continues on Saturday, when they’ll head to Mark Morris High School in Longview for a tournament.
After that, the league schedule rolls on Tuesday, when they host Rochester.
