Four years in the making, the Lady Dragon volleyball team has finally clenched the title of 2A District 5 champions after they went undefeated through their tournament games.  After a season of intense wins and hard fought gains, the Malad team earned a victory they have been hoping for.  Doing it on their home court with their friends, families, and fans filling the stands made it a night they will never forget.

The Lady Dragons began their tournament play going up against the Aberdeen Tigers on Saturday, October 14.  Having already beaten the Tigers in both of their earlier matchups this season, Malad was more than ready to take them down.  In three easy games, the Lady Dragons defeated Aberdeen 25-6, 25-6, and 25-7.  Coach Camie Tripp used the game as an opportunity to give her up and coming junior players a chance to compete and get some crucial experience for their games to come.

Defeating Aberdeen advanced Malad to the semi-final round where they set to take on Bear Lake, their toughest conference competitor, on Wednesday, October 18.  With two losses to the Lady Dragons, the Bears came in gunning for them, hoping to finally come out with the win.  From the very first serve, both teams came out with an intense drive.  Teagan Daniels really got things rolling for Malad as she sent over several tough serves that the Bears just couldn’t convert to plays on the court or points on the scoreboard.

As aggressive as the Lady Dragons played, the Bears were able to match their resolve.  Not only did they send over charged hits and serves, but they kept alive shanked hits that were sure to be playing ending.  Bear Lake’s ability to send the ball back again and again made them a fair contender for Malad.

The very best play of the game was played out in the first set where the Lady Dragon front line defense said again and again, “Not in our house!”  After a Malad serve, Bear Lake set up an attack from the right side where they were met up with middle hitter Liv Nelson and Brynnlee Jones.  The duo blocked the hit back to the Bears who managed to pop it back up and set it up for another hit, this time from the outside.  Racing across the net, Nelson met the outside hitter with Izzy Haycock to put up another dominating block.  Bear Lake once again kept the ball from falling and again set up for another hit down the middle.  With flawless timing and technique, Nelson went for the solo block at the middle, dropping the ball and putting a final stop to the Bear’s attempts.

The front row block played a crucial part in the Lady Dragon’s play for the night, even putting up the winning point for the first set.  With the score 24-21, Bear Lake mispassed the ball, setting it up as the net.  In an attempt to push it over their middle blocker went up with the pass where she was met by Katie Allen for the block, with Allen winning the joust, the point and the opening set for Malad.

Recognizing the truly competitive they found themselves in, the Lady Dragons knew that it would take great skill, planning and execution to win the next two games of the match.  In their own words, the team played with “true grit,” “all in” and “full throttle.”  There rarely was a play that a player wasn’t on the floor diving for the ball, using their quick reflexes to pop up the ball as it came by or slamming down with all they had.

Hungry on the front row, offensive hitters Hallie Horsley, Jones, Nelson, Allen and Haycock put across big hits play after play.  Even when it looked like the Bear Lake block was putting up an impenetrable wall, the Lady Dragons found a way to hit around it, tool it off of it or just slam it through.  

The energy the offense brought as they put up such big hits played a crucial role to keep the MHS team on track when their play seemed to take a dip.  Whether it was fatigue, loss of faith or mismatch on the court, just as it seemed the Lady Dragons had the win in the bag, the Bears would bring a surge that would easily steal the momentum of the game.  

Relentless in their fight for the win, Malad never gave up in those moments that required them to give nothing short of their best.  Working through those tough rotations made each all the sweeter, especially when it meant winning the second game, 25-21.

Any good coach will tell you that a great volleyball play always begins with a good pass.  A good pass opens up the possibilities that a setter can orchestrate as she moves the ball across the net.  Time and time again, the Lady Dragons not only dug the Bear Lake attacks and tough serves, but they passed well enough that setter Adley Kimberling could set her attackers up for success.  Kimberling continually read the defense to see where the best openings were, whether it was a strong outside it or a quick dish, her commanding insight led the offense as they moved through each play of the game.

Moving through the third set of the match, the Lady Dragons found themselves on the brink of the win with the score 24-18.  With the crowd cheering, “One more point!” Horsley stepped up to the service line.  Bear Lake managed to pop up the tough serve, sending back an aggressive hit.  Digging the hit, the Lady Dragons set up their own attack to Jones on the outside who slammed it down for the match winning kill.

The Lady Dragons accomplished the feat of becoming district champions as they once again defeated Bear Lake in the championship match on Thursday, October 19.  With everything on the line, both teams played all out.  On fire and playing with a will to win, Malad took charge of the opening game, 25-17.  Not wanting a repeat of their previous matchup, Bear Lake found the means to pull out ahead to claim the win of the second match, 22-25.  Tied as they came into the third game, both teams came out playing full tilt.  Moving into extra points, the Lady Dragons took the narrow victory as they finally went up by two points to win 27-25.

Stepping into the fourth set of the game, the Lady Dragons were determined to win it and with it, the district title.  With points rallying back and forth like the ball on the court, the two teams slowly inched their way to 25 points.  After being tied at 12 points, Malad pulled ahead by just a few points in a lead that they were able to manage as the game wound down.  Frustrated as they were falling behind, Bear Lake called a time out, hoping to turn things around.  Horsley answered the pause in the game with a killer jump serve that dropped short in the middle of the Bear Lake court, too short for anyone to pass.

The final four points were anything but easy as the Lady Dragons worked to finish the game.  The Bears managed a back line hit and a quick tip passed Malad as they fought back in the last plays of the game.  From the court and from the bench, the team began to cheer louder and louder with each point they earned.  With the score coming down to Malad 24, Bear Lake 20, the Bears put down a big kill to bring it 24-21.  But the pressure was too much for the Bears as they went up to serve, putting the ball just outside the back line and giving over the final point of the set and the game.

As 2A District 5 champions, the Lady Dragons will next move on to the IHSAA State Volleyball Tournament that will be held at Lakefield High School October 27 and 28.  Malad will open their tournament play against Bear Lake.  Also competing in the tournament are teams from Melba, Cole Valley, Nampa Christian, Declo, Kellogg, and Firth.