It was clear in the first game that the match was going to be a battle as Plateau Valley won 27-25. Rangely fought back behind incredible play at the net by freshmen Sarah Connor and Katelynn Brown.
Plateau Valley had a big middle hitter, but five solo blocks from Connor slowed her down, giving Rangely the win 25-22. Game three found the Panthers a little off their game and Collbran won 25-15.
The Panthers were down two games to one, and behind to start the third game, but they showed the composure of a veteran team.
“They don’t seem to get rattled, they really just took over in that fourth game,” said coach Mergelman.
It was a team effort with Simone Heinle picking up 12 digs to keep the ball alive and Carrie Goddard adding nine digs and five kills in the win. Antoinette Dorris had 30 assists and did a fantastic job of getting to the second ball and keeping the offense going.
Rangely won game four 25-22 setting up the final fifth game to be played to 15. The Panthers came out strong behind aggressive offensive play from Lindzey Thacker who finished with eight kills, seven digs and 17 total points serving.
Katelynn Brown didn’t hesitate to swing hard, with 26 serves and eight kills. The team demonstrated outstanding confidence in each other, putting together a solid performance and beating Plateau Valley 15-9.
In the total team effort, Justyne Dembowski had seven digs and 13 serves, Katye Allred played great ball, particularly late in the match, adding nine kills. Dorris added 16 serves for the team, and was behind the line with the winning serve.
The young team took another leap, adding to their success and showing they are prepared to play at the varsity level.
Rangely plays Vail Mountain at home on Thursday with games at 4, 5, and 6 p.m. Then they travel to Meeker on Friday with games scheduled for 5:30, 6:30, and 7:30 p.m.
