By Drew Terhall

Dailyadvocate.com

NEW MADISON — In a battle between two improved teams since the Greenville Federal Invitational, the Mississinawa Valley volleyball team won 3-1 over Tri-Village on the road on August 29.

Mississinawa Valley head coach Nancy Whitted said once again, her team started out slow then started to get better as the game went on.

“They seem to do that. Which is much better than starting out strong and then fizzling out. I would rather they fizzle in the beginning and finish strong, which is pretty much what they do,” Whitted said. “I told them Tri-Village was much better this year. Their defense is on point. You really can’t get stuff by them. I’m impressed by them. My girls pulled it together again.”

The Lady Patriots had trouble finding consistency in this game. Tri-Village head coach Taylor Rawlings said this team is still trying to find the consistency they need to play with. They played great for most of the game, but also had their lows that made winning this game tough on them.

“There were moments we showed that consistency and that’s when we were on top. Then those moments when we didn’t we let them come back. It goes back to that roller-coaster piece. When you play like a roller-coaster, the results are going to be this,” Rawlings said.

Both teams struggled early in the first set. Once they found their footing, it was a back and forth set. Both teams traded leads late in the set.

Players were diving all over the floor and going into their bag of tricks to steal crucial points. Once the dust settled, Tri-Village just made that extra play to get a 25-23 set win to take the first set.

Rawlings said the first set was a great example of what they can be if they can keep up that level of play for the whole game.

“We find our groove and we look really good. But when we don’t have that, it’s the reverse effect,” Rawlings said.

The second set was similar. This time, Mississinawa Valley had a 14-10 lead and looked like they were in control of the set. The Lady Patriots came back fighting and tied the set 22-22.

With strong serving and some strong hits, the Lady Blackhawks stayed calm and won the second set in extra points, 26-24. When they needed it the most, Mississinawa Valley made some great defensive plays to keep the rally alive and give them the opportunity to tie the match.

“We had a lot of good digs. We had a lot of good chased balls they had to go after. Really impressed with their defense too. It’s getting better,” Whitted said.

It was all Mississinawa Valley in the third set. The power hitting from their hitters overwhelmed Tri-Village at times. Whitted said she had to get on her team to stop tipping the ball and start hitting it. Once they made that adjustment, they took control of the game.

Tri-Village tried to slow down Mississinawa Valley’s momentum with a timeout down 15-10. The Lady Blackhawks continued to put the Lady Patriots defense in tough spots and closed the set out on a 10-1 run to win 25-11.

Entering the fourth set, Tri-Village came out with positive energy and battled for the entire set. The hitting from the Lady Blackhawks was just too much for them in the fourth set.

It was more than the power from the Lady Blackhawks. They started to mix in the tips and the sets to attack the open space in the middle. Whitted said the team has done a great job in practice listening and working on their hitting and serving.

“They’re very smart about hitting. That’s the one thing I’m really proud of. Kelsey and I teach in practice is hit smart. Serve smart. Have a purpose. Know where it’s open and know where a good spot to serve is,” Whitted said.

With Mississinawa Valley in a groove, they held off Tri-Village to win 25-17 and take home the win.

Tri-Village falls to 2-3 on the season with a 1-1 WOAC record. The team has already improved since the Greenville Federal Invite on August 24 and will continue to improve.

“We’re moving in the right direction. But, we still got some work to put in,” Rawlings said.

Mississinawa Valley is now 4-1 on the season with a 2-0 WOAC record.

Tri-Village will next play at Tri-County North on September 5 at 6:30 p.m. They will then host Fort Recovery on September 7 at 11 a.m.

Mississinawa Valley will be at Parkway on September 3 with the match starting at 6:30 p.m. They will then host the Blackhawks Invitational on September 7 starting at 10 a.m.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected].