Sweet Home’s volleyball team entered the third week of Oregon West Conference volleyball play in second place in the league standings after wins over Newport and Philomath.
On Saturday, Oct. 1, the Huskies played in the Junction City Tournament, battling back from a 19-13 deficit in the first set to beat Klamath Union 25-22, then following that up with a 25-21 win to take the match.
Against Siuslaw, it was “three sets of fighting tooth and nail,” Coach Mary Hutchins said of the match.
Sweet Home lost the first set 25-20, then came back to win the second 25-23 before falling 17-15 in the third.
“The whole game was back-and-forth,” Hutchins said of the final set. “It could have gone either way; it just didn’t go our way this time. We had a couple tough calls also that really put our backs against the wall and I am so proud of the girls for not giving up.
“Both Klamath Union and Siuslaw had tall, experienced outside hitters and middles and we were able to start getting a block up and also consistently defend against their strong attacks. Our serving was very consistent in both games.
“Overall, it was a great afternoon of growth for Sweet Home.”
Sweet Home 3, Philomath 1
At home against the Warriors on Thursday, Sept. 29, the Huskies lost the first game 22-25, then roared back to win next three 25-18, 25-17, 25-23.
“We knew this was an important league game for us and for preparing to possibly make a run at some post-season play,” Hutchins said of the match with now-No. 12 Philomath, ranked two slots below Sweet Home.
“We watched film and worked to identify what they do and what their player habits are. We were able to come out and stay pretty tight with them most of the first set. Some unforced errors on our part in the first set put the game in Philomath’s favor.
“Sets 2 and 3, we played strong – stuck with our game plan for the most part and controlled the ball on our side of the court.”
The Huskies had a “decent-sized” lead in the fourth set, but gave it up on some receive and mental errors, she said.
“This is a growth moment for us as a team.
“We are working hard on having a competitive mindset at all times during games. We went from being in the lead to one point behind late in the set and pulled out the win.
“I’m very proud of them for showing tenacity and grit in that moment.”
Sweet Home 3, Newport 0
At Newport on Sept. 27, the Huskies overcame the long trip and a late 7 p.m. start, which made for a long night, with a 25-16, 25-22, 25-11 win.
“The girls did an amazing job of staying focused and ready to play,” Hutchins said. “It was a pretty routine game. We were challenged a bit with our block. Their outside was getting a piece of our block and tooling it quite a bit and we struggled a bit with picking up those balls in the second set, which made for a close score but were able to take back control in the third set and finish strong.”
Sweet Home will play on the road for the next week, starting with a trip to North Marion Tuesday, Oct. 4, and then at Stayton on Thursday, Oct. 6. The Huskies will then play at No. 2 Cascade at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11, before returning to host Newport on Oct. 13.
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