RANGELY | The Rangely High School volleyball team entered Friday night’s Homecoming match looking to bounce back from a 3-0 loss to Coal Ridge. Their opponent, the Hayden Tigers, also came in seeking redemption after falling to Plateau Valley 3-1 the week before. The two teams last met on Aug. 22 during Rangely’s home tournament, when the Panthers defeated Hayden 2-0.
This time around, the matchup was a battle from start to finish. The Panthers outlasted the Tigers in a five-set thriller, winning 3-2 with set scores of 25-23, 25-17, 17-25, 20-25 and 15-10.
Head coach Angie Hill said the Panthers “started off slow against Hayden” but were able to turn things around with better communication.
“We had good things happen, we just weren’t controlling our game,” Hill said. “Once we started communicating with each other, it turned around quickly.”
She added that securing a Homecoming win in front of the home crowd was especially rewarding.
In the decisive fifth set, Hill credited her players for staying composed under pressure.
“The girls played smart,” she said. “They worked hard on placing the ball and minimizing mistakes.”
Senior Addison Scott led the Panthers with 12 kills and 19 digs. Sophomore Rylee Kenney ran the offense with 14 assists and 14 digs, while sophomore Isabella Cox added 13 assists and four aces. Sophomore Natalie Bollinger contributed five kills and five blocks, and sophomore Taylor Fouch anchored the defense with 34 serve receptions and 14 digs.
With the Homecoming victory, Rangely improved to 7-10 on the season.
The following day, the Panthers hosted Manila and earned another strong win, taking the match 3-1 (25-19, 25-15, 13-25, 25-14). Hill said the team again started slow but found their rhythm as the match went on.
“Once again we started off slow in the first set but came out fired up to secure the win,” Hill said. “We focused on communication and keeping our serves in.”
Hill praised her team’s focus and energy coming off the emotional Homecoming win.
She highlighted the team’s improved offensive execution against Manila.
“The girls really stepped up their offensive game,” Hill said. “They started running plays and trying different things, and that was exciting.”
Scott again led the Panthers with 13 kills and three aces, while Bollinger added seven kills, four blocks, and three aces. Freshman Makenzie Hill and senior Aubrianna Tapia each contributed five kills. Cox and Kenney shared setting duties with 16 and 14 assists, respectively. Defensively, Fouch tallied 17 digs and four service aces, and freshman Teagan Behunin added eight digs.
Hill noted Scott’s leadership and the team’s overall serving performance as weekend highlights.
“Addison Scott had 13 kills vs. Hayden, and the girls as a team had a total of 13 aces vs. Manila,” she said.
The pair of wins moved Rangely to 8-10 overall and 2-5 in league play, placing them ninth in the 2A/1A Western Slope League standings.
Looking ahead, Hill said the team is focused on continuing to control play on their side of the net as they prepare to host North Park on Friday and travel to Olathe on Saturday.
“We are prepared for North Park and will continue working on controlling the game on our side of the net,” Hill said.
The Lady Panthers will host North Park Friday before hitting the road to Olathe on Saturday.
Senior #5 Courtney Files bumps the ball back over the net during Friday night’s homecoming matchup, helping the Lady Panthers secure a hard-fought 3-2 win over the Hayden Tigers. MATT SCOGGINS PHOTO