MEEKER | The Meeker High School volleyball team returned home Friday night for its season opener, hosting Vail Christian. The Saints had edged the Cowboys 3-2 last September, and this time the result was the same, with Meeker falling in five sets.
Vail Christian took the first set 25-13 before the Cowboys rallied to win the next two, 25-23 and 25-20. The Saints closed strong, winning the fourth set 25-17 and the deciding fifth set 15-5.
Head coach Greg Cravens said serve receive and blocking proved to be the biggest challenges.
“That one serve receive in the first set, it bothered us big time, but I thought we did a great job of coming back the second set, not letting that bother us,” Cravens said. “And I thought we passed well the rest of the match. They are a high flying, hit-the-ball-high team, and we just didn’t challenge them enough on our block, on their left side hitter. So we need to continue working on that, and we’ll get better.”
Senior Rylee Sullivan recorded 11 kills and a team-high 20 digs. She said balancing her role on both sides of the ball comes down to mindset.
“My idea behind the game is that you have to play defense to be able to play offense, so the balance comes naturally,” Sullivan said. “Keeping the team’s energy can be hard, but it is key to keep the mindset of always knowing you’re in it, and players all need to do their role. I learned that we all have integrity and won’t quit on each other.”
Freshman Raegan Clatterbaugh led the offense with 12 kills and a .480 hitting percentage in her home debut.
“I have spent a lot of time watching Meeker volleyball since I was a little girl. It was super cool to play at home in front of such a big crowd and the energy in the gym was part of the reason that I feel like I had a good night,” Clatterbaugh said. “At the net, I don’t know if Vail Christian was expecting me since I am a freshman and I haven’t played against them before.”
She added that the Cowboys adjusted well after the opening set.
“I felt like our team adjusted after the first set and we really started to gel as a team. Our seniors are great leaders, and they kept us all focused during a long, tight game,” she said. “I think that our main focus heading into next weekend will probably be serve receive. We will continue to work out the little things as a team.”
On defense, senior Braydin Raley had 17 digs and 46 receptions. She said she focused on positioning against Vail’s outside hitters.
“Vail had a big outside hitter, so coach told me to protect the middle,” Raley said. “There were a few plays where she would hit deep, but for the most part, if I lined up with our blockers and took a shuffle step in, she would put it right on my platform.”
With the loss, Meeker dropped to 3-3 on the season.
The Cowboys bounced back quickly, defeating Soroco 3-2 on the road Saturday. Meeker took the first two sets 25-11 and 25-8 before dropping the next two 25-19 and 25-17. The Cowboys edged the Rams 15-13 in the deciding set to improve their record to 4-3.
Sophomore Hailey Schwartz led the team with 13 assists and said connection with hitters was key.
“The thing that worked best for me to connect with my hitters was understanding where each of them was on the court, so I knew what my sets should be like for each of them,” Schwartz said. Junior Sawyer May added four aces and served at 85 percent serving efficiency.
“My mindset at the line is to stay confident and not overthink it,” May said. “It wasn’t just about aces but keeping steady pressure. As a team, we stayed composed and trusted each other. Even after losing a set, we reset and kept pushing.”
Senior Jacey Follman would finish the day with 11 assists and 10 digs for the defense. She explained how she balanced offense and defense that day, how she brings steadiness in matches that go the five full sets, and what she noticed about her team’s energy when things got tight in the fourth and fifth set.
“As a setter, I can put my focus towards our offense because I get the opportunity to control where the ball goes. But I also try to benefit my team defensively whenever possible. “My role as a senior is very important because I know all the younger players are looking up to us and how we handle matches under pressure. Bringing positive energy and support to each player, both on and off the court, is vital to our performance through a five-set game.”
“We honestly trusted each other even more in the 4th and 5th set. We realized that the only way to pull through a tough game was to be loud and uplifting. Each girl gave so much energy, which motivated us to keep fighting for the next point. The closest matches always pull our team together the most,” continued Follman.
Cravens said he was encouraged by the team’s resilience.
“It was good to see the girls gather themselves and get that win,” he said. “Things weren’t going our way, but the girls stepped up and got it done.”
Looking ahead, Meeker travels to Rangely on Saturday. Cravens said the Cowboys’ main focus will be on ball control.
“Volleyball is all about ball control,” he said. “We need to be better on keeping our offense in system and creating more out-of-system balls for them. We have the capabilities — we just need to show them off.”
