September has been nothing but Go! Go! Go! for the Lady Dragon volleyball team.  In four weeks, the team stepped on the court for over 20 matches, the most recent as they took on the Pirates in West Side on Wednesday, September 24.  Despite battling a number of injuries, Malad squeaked by with another win to keep their conference record all in the win column.

The rival matchup didn't start off well for the MHS team as they lost the opening match to the Pirates 19-25.  With Starter Liv Nelson on the bench due to an ankle injury from the previous week, the team was out of sync and struggling to find their rhythm.  At the same time, West Side was bringing a great intensity to the game that made it a battle from the first serve.

Down 10-20, it was clear that this game was anything but typical for the Lady Dragons.  But then, slowly but surely, Malad began to settle into the game.  Middle blocker Mady Vanbebber stopped the Pirate play with big blocks at the net, Jette Nelson attacked from the outside, Paityn Ward popped up crucial West Side hits, and Brynnlee Jones sailed over serves the defense struggled to play.  

With five consecutive points, the scoring finally read 19-22, the Lady Dragons closing the gap.  Unfortunately it wasn’t enough as the Pirates pushed three more points to finish the game, Malad 19, West Side 25.

Despite the talented subs stepping in to play, Malad needed to get back to their trusted rotation and flow to the game.  Head Coach Camie Tripp subbed Liv in, testing the sore ankle and hoping all would fare well.  Ward started the second game serving, scoring their first point as West Side hit their return out of bounds.  Jette ping-ponged a short tip off the Pirate defense for a second MHS point before Liv scored the third off a Pirate overkill at the middle.  The strong start was just momentum the team needed to fuel their comeback. 

Before long, Malad was up 9-3, a lead they maintained and stretched out to 20-10.  Playing with more intensity and grit, the Lady Dragons sent over more challenging hits, covered the court with better efficiency, and caused greater chaos on the Pirate side of the net.  

Playing on game point, the two teams continued to rally back and forth across the net, neither relenting with the attack.  As West Side hit, the MHS team popped up the dig but it went wide off the court.  Izzy Haycock dove for the ball, batting it back into play as she flew through the air.  Ward muscled a deep pass to the back court, catching the Pirates on their heels.  Recovering, West Side managed to send over a following attack but Jones dug it for a perfect pass.  Haycock set the ball high to the outside for Jette who pounded it over untouched by the Pirates, winning the game 25-15.

West Side battled back in a big way in the third set of the game, nearly matching Malad point for point.  Of the 50 points awarded throughout the match, very few were due to either team committing errors.  The Lady Dragons notched up their score with Jones slamming hits through the block, Liv tipping just over the Pirate block, Vanbebber owning the block at the net, Jette swinging from the outside and Haycock scrambling to keep the ball up in play.  The back row defense worked to cover the back line, adjusting to the continuous changes the West Side attack brought.  

Having to go into extra points before determining a winner, Malad came out victorious as Liv pushed a tip right of the middle block contesting her play.  The outside blocker put a finger on the block, enough to change the trajectory wide of the digger coming up behind her.  The ball came down to hit the outside of her arm, shanking out of bounds to end the play and the game in favor of the Lady Dragons.

The MHS team up 2 games to 1, were determined to not give up another set to the Pirates.  West Side came out to take a one point lead, expanding it 8-3.  Battling back, it was their settling into their rhythm that dug them out of the small deficit.  Vanbebber perfectly tooled the hit off the double West Side middle block after Ward passed up the perfect dig, allowing Haycock to hone in the set for the hit.

The Lady Dragons took the lead after winning a tough rally, Jette ending the play with a hit that bounced off the passer to the open Pirate court.  Jones had back to back hits to help widen the lead, putting them up 17-14.  Ward set up the Malad match point with as she aced the serve, the ball shanking over and out of bounds.  A final rally between the two teams ended the match as Jette put over an unpassable hit to win the game, 25-18.

The team win was assisted by Jette Nelson with 17 kills and Liv Nelson adding 13 as well.  Ward led in the back row with 35 digs and 3 aces.  Vanbebber managed 4 solo blocks while Haycock added 45 assists and 23 digs.

“We’ve been a little beat up with some injuries in recent weeks,” commented Coach Tripp.  She continued, “We were hoping to get by with a few adjustments, but West Side showed up to make a statement. We were able to kick it in gear, but it was closer than we liked for sure!” She finished saying, “While we didn’t play our best, I was proud of the fight and grit we showed.”

The Lady Dragons return home after their long stretch on the road as they host the Aberdeen Tigers on Wednesday, October 1.