Blast from the past
Maidens sport retro jerseys in big win over Libby Tuesday
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RONAN — It was a blast from the past Thursday evening as the Maidens sported retro jerseys from the early 1990s to pick up their second conference win of the season.
Ronan needed just four games to get past Libby to pick up the win, downing the Lady Loggers 26-24, 25-16, 21-25, 25-16.
For the Maidens, it is the first time the team has picked up multiple conference wins in a season since 2007.
“It is a huge stepping stone for these girls,” Ronan head coach Naomi Mock said. “It does great things for their confidence. If they can go out on the court and see how much their hard work is paying off, it means a lot.”
For the Maidens, it is just another step in the right direction as the team works to build its program.
“Beating Libby is a very big thing for us,” Mock said. “Our attitude has really changed this year and it is doing great things for us. We don’t let them have those down moments where they doubt themselves, and it has made a huge difference. For us, it’s all about working hard and having fun with it.”
Wearing jerseys from the 1991-92 season, found by the team in a box earlier in the week, the Maidens survived a close contest in game one against the Lady Loggers, picking up a 26-24 win.
The Maidens came out rolling in the second game of the evening, cruising to a lopsided 25-16 win.
Game three was a different matter for the Maidens, who fell behind and could not recover. The Lady Loggers took advantage of the slip to pick up the win in game three, 25-21.
“It’s kind of like, once we were up by two games, we let down just a little,” Mock said. “We let down just enough to let the other team get back into it a little bit. It’s not like we lost focus, because we didn’t. I think we just relaxed a little too much.”
Ronan bounced back in a big way in game four and had no trouble finishing out the match with a 25-16 win.
“It was a wonderful match for us,” Mock said. “Everything flowed and was working well most of the time. As far as the third game goes, I have no idea what happened to us there.”
Tailyr Irvine had an outstanding match in the win for the Maidens, finishing with a team-high 10 kills and a pair of blocks. Marissa McCrea led the way in digs with 17 for Ronan, Alice Van Gunten and Taylor Lynch each had six assists and Tuesday Salmon led in aces with four.
The Maidens were in action again Saturday in a four-game loss to the Polson Lady Pirates.
Ronan will play again Saturday as the Maidens travel to St. Ignatius to take on Mission.
Summary
Ronan def. Libby
26-24, 25-16, 21-25, 25-16
Kills - Ronan 31 (Tailyr Irvine 10), Blocks - Ronan 4 (Irvine 2), Digs - Ronan 38 (Marissa McCrea 17), Assists - Ronan 25 (Alice Van Gunten 9, Taylor Lynch 9), Aces - Ronan 9 (Tuesday Salmon 4).
