The Lady Dragon volleyball team are keeping their winning streak alive as they had a big week of games at home in Malad.  Hosting conference opponent Bear Lake as well as their annual tournament, the Lady Dragons defeated every team they crossed the net with.  Their road to victory wasn’t easy as they had to defeat challenges along the way, some of them within themselves.

The Bear Lake Bears came to face off against Malad Wednesday, September 27 in their first matchup of the season.  Not underestimating their opponent, the MHS team expected the Lady Bears to bring their A-game and be a tough competitor, causing them to somewhat overthink their play as they started into the game.  Bear Lake did indeed bring to the court energy and skill that put the Lady Dragons abilities to the test, leading on the scoreboard for nearly half of the opening game.

But with their no-quit attitude, the Lady Dragons began battling back on the court and on the scoreboard to work their way back up to tie the score at 12 points.  Sophomore middle blocker, Liv Nelson, chipped in several points for Malad as she had a series of stellar blocks to help them take the lead.  Adley Kimberling, the senior setter and captain for the Lady Dragons, kept her team on course with consistent sets play after play, and then a surprising dump over the net to catch the Bears off guard.  Inching their way to the finish, Malad won the first match over Bear Lake, 25-20.

The Lady Dragons came out in the second game with more energy and intensity, but the Bears were there to match them play for play.  The points on the scoreboard seemed to rally back and forth as much as the ball went back and forth across the net.  As Malad would bring big hits, solid blocks and play saving digs, Bear Lake would bring their own intense serves and tough hits.

Just as it seemed that an easy victory was there for the taking, the Bears brought a surge of energy to their play, to tie the game at 22 points, then adding one more to take the lead.  Feeling frustrated but not defeated, the Lady Dragons brought a little extra fight back to their game to rally back.  Starting with a little luck, Malad tied the game again as Bear Lake put a serve into the net.  Kimberling confidently took to the service line, putting two serves over that the Bears struggled to make plays on.  As they attempted to take it over, Nelson covered the net with a block BLHS couldn’t pass up to take them to game point.  Bear Lake once again set up for a kill, but Nelson popped it up with a soft block.  Brynnlee Jones kept the ball in play with a quick pass when Kimberling dumped it over the net for the final point of the game, narrowly winning, 25-23.

Despite winning the first two games, the Lady Dragons still had a tough game ahead of them as they moved into the third and final game of the match.  The two teams continued to battle it out for each point, Malad slowly wearing down Bear Lake as they began to lose their edge and commit more errors.  With the Lady Dragons leading by just a few points at 14-11, they began to pull away on the scoreboard.  

Hallie Horsley, who had been leading the team with her powerful swing, began the MHS run as she sent a tip deep on the back row after Brylee Oglesbee popped the ball up on a play saving dive.  Nelson finished the play with another big block on the Bear Lake attack.  Malad never let up as they brought in points with short tips to weak spots, big blocks on the net, and stellar serves from the line.  The Bears rallied back with few points as the Lady Dragons finished the game, winning 25-14.

Head Coach Camie Tripp shared, “We just didn’t have our usual zeal out there on the court but we still got the job done.  They knew Bear Lake would be tough and I think they just tried to overthink it.  But I’m so proud of them for being able to pull themselves up and still get the win when it wasn’t their best game.”

The Lady Dragons came out in a big way and ready to play as they made their way through their weekend tournament.  On the opening day of the two day tournament, Malad went 3-0, defeating Ririe: 25-14 / 25-19, Butte County: 25-20 / 25-12 and North Fremont: 25-10 / 25-22.  With their undefeated record, The Lady Dragons went into the Gold Bracket where they continued to move the tournament undefeated and take first place as they beat out Mountain Crest: 25-18 / 25-23, Bear Lake: 25-21 / 25-14, and Declo: 25-10 / 25-17.

The Malad volleyball team will next host West Side on Wednesday, October 4 for their second face off of the season.  Over the weekend, the Lady Dragons will compete in the Butte County “I Pink I Can” Tournament, going up against some tough teams including Horseshoe Bend, Mackay and Rockland.