A huge second-game comeback helped the Hawks pull even with Lathrop before the Malemutes took control late for a 3-1 (25-14, 24-26, 25-14, 25-18) win at Houston High.
“That wasn’t our best game, but we played pretty well,” Houston coach Greg Gaither said following the match.
  
|
The Malemutes then came out firing again in the second, jumping out to an 8-0 lead behind the strength of Frana Burtness-Adams’ jump serve. Houston didn’t quit, hanging close enough to Lathrop to take advantage of a substitution error midway through the game.
With Lathrop serving and seemingly in control at 18-10, the officials briefly conferred before deciding Houston should serve with the score 15-11, ruling that the Malemutes had played out of rotation.
Following the delay, Houston came alive, eventually tying the game at 19-19 when Lathrop couldn’t handle a Sara Thiele serve. After trading several points, Lathrop had a chance to serve for the game, but Houston’s Alyssa Acton’s clever shot found a hole in the Malemutes’ defense to keep the Hawks alive.
Thiele and Acton led Houston with seven kills each in the match.
Two points later, Houston’s Jen Mason served out the game to tie things up at 1-1.
Gaither said starting slowly has been a problem for his team all season.
“We’re doing way too much coming from behind,” he said, noting that Houston fell behind in every game last weekend in a 3-2 win over North Pole.
The second game’s final point drew a large roar from a big Houston crowd that included a vocal student section. Gaither said having a large home crowd was a big plus for his team, and said he hopes the trend continues.
“I love that a bunch of football players are showing up at our games cheering,” he said. “It makes a huge difference.”
The Hawks were unable to carry the big momentum swing into the rest of the match. Houston held the lead just once over the final two games, and was unable to deal with a quick Lathrop attack.
“I’ve got to give a lot of credit to Lathrop for just playing good volleyball,” Gaither said.
The loss overshadowed a gutsy showing by the Hawks, which were able to prolong a number of rallies by diving and hustling around the Houston gym.
Gaither said the scrappy play is no accident. This is Houston’s first year playing at the class 4A level, which includes Alaska’s largest high schools. With one of the lowest enrollments of any school in the division, Houston is gradually making the adjustment to playing teams with bigger, faster athletes than at the 3A level.
“The speed of the game is a little faster,” he said.
Class 4A teams also typically feature bigger players and deeper benches ” which the Hawks must somehow counter.
“Those things do make a difference,” Gaither said. “We’ve just got to figure a way to make that go away.”
Houston’s win last weekend against North Pole proved the Hawks can play at the 4A level. It also proved that the step up won’t be as dramatic as some might have thought.
“People said intimidation was going to be a factor,” Gaither said. “I don’t think that’s had an effect at all.”
For the Hawks to find success, Gaither said the Hawks must continue to play without fear and do the little things needed to win games at the next level.
“If we play good floor defense, we can play with anybody.”
Palmer 3, Wasilla 1
The Palmer Moose improved to 5-2 in Northern Lights Confernece play with a 3-1 (26-24, 24-26, 25-14, 25-22) win over the Wasilla Warriors at Palmer High School on Tuesday.
“The first two games could have gone either way,” Palmer head coach Steve Reynolds said. “We snuck in with the win in the first, and they did in the second.”
Senior Geneva Ratcliff led the Moose with 15 kills, five total blocks and three aces in a match. Reynolds said Ratcliff was certainly a difference-maker against the Warriors.
Seniors Nicole Kenney and Sarah Svedin each posted a team-high 20 digs, while Svedin led the squad with 21 assists.
Palmer, Colony and Wasilla all compete in the West High School Spiketacular in Anchorage this weekend. The action starts today at 11 a.m. and Saturday at 9 a.m.
Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@frontiersman.com
Comments
No comments posted.