Netters lose a close on on the road

Sonja Karp
NLJ Sports Reporter
 
The goal of any team is to be peaking as they head into post-season play, and the Lady Dogies may be poised to do just that.
The squad had only one game this weekend in Thermopolis and, though it ended in a five-set loss, they played them much better than the last time the two teams met. When
the Lady Bobcats played in Newcastle, Thermopolis took the match in
three straight sets, but this time, the Lady Dogies gave them a run for
their money.
“The girls really hung in there and did some really good things,” head coach Jenny Willard declared. “But there ended up being just too many unforced errors in the last set. We definitely could have been on the other side of the scoreboard though.”
The level of play that Willard’s team has shown in the last several contests has indeed risen, but another contributor to the closer contest was that Newcastle put in a new defense to adapt to the Bobcat’s style of play the first time around.
“Before, they really played a tip game, so we prepared for that,” Willard explained. “We shut that down pretty well, but then they started hammering the ball on the outside.”
Thermopolis had one player who gave the Lady Dogies fits on the night from the outside, and Willard explained that her squad struggled to get the block in place in time to slow her down.
In the first set, Newcastle demonstrated that they were ready for whatever the Hot Springs County team had to bring as they dominated the home team 25-13. However, the Lady Bobcats rallied to take sets two and three 25-20 and 25-17 respectively.
“In the first set, we played pretty collective volleyball and went on some runs so that was really good to see,” Willard smiled. “We held onto momentum which is something we’ve been working to do, so that was a good feeling.”
Heading into the pivotal fourth set, the Lady Dogies determined to make a comeback and they did taking it 25-18 and pushed the match into a fifth and deciding set.
“I was really pleased to see how the girls responded to losing those second two sets because it could really go either way,” Willard nodded. “It’s pretty easy to get defeated and kind of roll over, but we didn’t do that.”
Unfortunately, the wind was kind of sucked out of the Lady Dogies’ sails as they headed into the final set of the evening, and unforced errors got the better of them allowing Thermopolis to take the win 15-3.
“The last set was just a mental toughness situation with a lot of unforced errors right off the bat,” Willard sighed. “It was frustrating not to get the win because we were so close, and just couldn’t pull it out.”
With the season edging ever closer to the Regional tournament, Willard is pleased with the progress her team is making overall.
“We’ve seen quite a bit of growth over the last few weeks, and I feel like we’re getting to where we want to be,” she determined. “Thermopolis doesn’t bring anything we can’t compete against and I think the girls are starting to see that.”
This week the Lady Dogies finish off their regular season with a match on the road on Friday in Douglas and then hosting a triangular against Burns and Buffalo on Saturday. As of now, Newcastle has the fourth seed in the Northeast quadrant, but there is a possibility of bumping up to third depending on the outcome of this week’s contests.