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Coal Ridge dispatches Moffat County volleyball in three

Nate Waggenspack
Alex Samuelson receives a serve during the first set Thursday at Moffat County High School. MCHS fell to visiting Coal Ridge in three sets, 11-25, 20-25, 16-25.
Nate Waggenspack

Other Thursday results:

The C team beat Coal Ridge in two sets in the first match Thursday night, 25-22, 25-11.

The junior varsity lost in two sets, 14-25, 14-25.

A new rotation didn’t help the Moffat County volleyball team in Craig Thursday, as they lost another three-set match.

The Bulldogs hosted Coal Ridge, the second-place team in the Western Slope League, at Moffat County High School Thursday evening, falling to the Titans 11-25, 20-25, 16-25. It was the second time Coal Ridge beat Moffat County this season.

Head coach Starla Jensen used a different starting rotation than she has most rest of the season in an effort to create more offense at the net. With not much time to transition to the new lineup after Tuesday’s home game, there was some confusion for Moffat County early in the match.



“We didn’t play very good, because we were on a new rotation and it was a little different for a lot of girls,” said senior Allie Ehlers after the game. “We didn’t quite have it down at the start.”

The Bulldogs receive of serve in the first set was off, and Coal Ridge pulled away through the middle of the set for a quick 25-11 win. In the second set, they jumped out to an 8-2 advantage, but the Bulldogs battled back.



Those portions of the match were where Jensen was proud of her team.

“When they played, they played well,” she said. “I think we got a better glimpse tonight of what’s inside of them. Now we just need to have that, all-around, all the time.”

In both the second and third sets, Moffat County fell behind early but recovered to tie the game later on. Titans’ hitters Paige Ryan, Alicia Hampton and Bailey Davis were too tough at the end of sets, however, and Coal Ridge closed each of them out to win in three.

Ehlers said the Bulldogs occasionally surrendered those lengthy runs of points because they didn’t respond well to losing some points.

“When we would lose, we get down and don’t always keep our heads up,” she said.

Jensen echoed the thoughts on momentum’s role in the match.

“Volleyball is such a momentum game, and it can be a head game,” she said. “Whichever team keeps their heads in the game and responds to losing points usually wins. We still struggle sometimes coming back from those, and I think you saw that at times tonight.”

Nate Waggenspack can be reached at 970-875-1795 or nwaggenspack@craigdailypress.com.


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