Lady Blackhawks face up and down battle in volleyball

The Lady Blackhawk’s volleyball team showed impressive hustle and skill in what head coach Heather Zorrozua called “a moral victory” in their Sept. 25 league match against East Valley, followed by a Sept. 27 loss to Pullman and a solid presentation in the Sheridan Classic last Saturday.

The team lost to East Valley 3-2 but “performed phenomenally,” Zorrozua said.

“Sometimes it’s hard to control all aspects of the game, but the girls were amazing and we learned a lot about what we’re capable of,” she said. “They set the bar high.”

Junior Shelby Draper came through with 17 kills in that Greater Northern League match, with junior Riley Potter delivering her characteristically high assist numbers.

Unfortunately it was a performance that wasn’t repeated a few days later, when Cheney (5-4, 2-4) squared off against Pullman (7-1, 5-1) and lost 3-0. It was a close game through the first two sets of 25-23, but Pullman took the win 25-15 in the third set.

Zorrozua admits her team feels a certain rivalry with Pullman and players were disappointed they didn’t play to their full potential.

“You can’t wait to see what kind of team we’re going to be every day,” Zorrozua said. “We have to make a choice.”

In the Pullman match, Draper and junior Abby Witt both contributed nine kills each, with sophomore Avery Stark kicking in two aces and seven digs, but it just wasn’t enough to stand up to the Greyhounds.

The girls’ job was still not done, and they faced the Sheridan Classic at Ferris head on, coming out on top of four out of seven games.

After losing to Lewis and Clark and Mountain View, the team rallied and delivered a win against Granger 3-0. They lost 2-0 to Oaksdale, but followed up with three rapid-fire 2-0 wins over Liberty, Colton and Moses Lake, in what Zorrozua called “great practice.”

The team’s upcoming matches against Clarkston and West Valley will be telling, as players try to live up to the bar they’ve set for themselves.

“If we can do what we’ve proven we can do, we’ll be very successful,” Zorrozua said.

Shannen Talbot can be reached at [email protected].