“They have won 20 games in a row to end the season without dropping a single set!” Head Coach Camie Tripp shared as her Lady Dragon team claimed the 3A District title.  The week-long district tournament ended just as the players, coaches, parents and fans had hoped, but it certainly didn’t come easily despite the amazing statistics the Malad volleyball team has tallied this season.

The Lady Dragon’s district path began Saturday, October 19.  As the number one seed of the tournament, they were pitted against the winner of the play-in game between the newest conference opponents, Wendell and Declo.  Having beat them twice over the season, Declo easily moved past the Trojans to earn a place in the tournament.  

In a similar fashion, the Lady Dragons easily won out against the Declo Hornets, earning a combined score of 75-17 points across their three games.  Against the Hornets, libero Riglee Peterson tallied a tournament high of 25 digs.

Advancing to the next round, the Lady Dragons took on the West Side Pirates on Thursday, October 24.  Over the season, the MHS team had seen significant improvement in the Pirates and knew their matchup wouldn’t be easy.  And oh how they were right.

West Side came into the opening set with fierce determination and intensity that caught the Lady Dragons on their heels.  From big digs, even bigger blocks and well placed tips, they contended all across the court.  As the two teams neared the capping score of 25, it appeared to be anyone’s game.  Fortunately, the Lady Dragons held things together enough to claim the
win, 25-23.

The Pirates were nothing if not determined as they began the second set, making plays on their end and forcing errors on the other.  It was clear that if the Lady Dragons didn’t find a way to bounce back that West Side would dominate the game.

Down 1-6, the Lady Dragons began to inch their way back.  It was improved blocking led by Mady Vanbebber, crucial serves led by Izzy Haycock and Quincee Hammer that began to make the difference.  Over the remainder of the game, the Malad went on a 24-9 point run to eventually win 25-17.  If there was one word to describe the Lady Dragons at that point of the game it was resilient.

When asking Coach Tripp what changed in that second game she answered, “We shifted our attention and focus to really hone in on what West Side was doing.  We talked about not just watching the player but seeing her swing and tracking the ball.  That sort of focus helped us dial in on their game and finally adjust.”

With those adjustments in place, game three suddenly became a game of redemption where the Lady Dragons began playing at an elevated level.  Outside hitter Brinley Clark had an impressive 8 kills on 11 attempts with opposite hitter Paityn Ward going 3 for 3.  Defensive specialist Brylee Oglesbee took a crucial dig, popping up the hard that split the MHS block and would have been a bolstering play had she not thwarted the kill.  Over the match, the Lady Dragon’s play went from being somewhat passive and reactive to aggressive, strategic, and dominating.  Malad closed out the game 25-7.

The Lady Dragons matched up against the Pirates in their final game of the tournament on Saturday, October 26.  The two teams began the first set in close contention on the court and on the scoreboard.  Malad continued to lead, but the gap was narrow with West Side trailing by just two points. 

Moving through their second rotation of the game, an intensity began to grow in the MHS team as suddenly more hits, blocks, and digs began connecting.  Middle blocker Liv “the Beast” Nelson couldn’t be stopped, both on offense and defense.  By the end of the match, Nelson had claimed 8 kills and had her hands on 6 blocks as the Lady Dragons won 25-12.  With the first set behind them, Malad pushed on through the second and third game to sweep the match, 25-13 and 25-14.  

The district championship game won’t be the last time the Lady Dragons will match up against the Pirates as the two teams will play again in their opening game of the state tournament on Thursday, October 31 at 3:00 pm.