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Maidens finish fourth at Columbia Falls
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COLUMBIA FALLS — The Maidens picked up some much-needed experience against tough competition over the weekend as they finished fourth at the Columbia Falls Tip-Off Volleyball Tournament.
Ronan got off to a great start during the opening day of play Friday, winning seven of its first eight sets before dropping the final pair to a strong Dillon team.
Day two was not as fruitful for the Maidens as they lost all four of their sets on the final day of play, including a pair against Hamilton in the tournament’s third-place match.
Despite the rough finish, the Maidens managed to finish the tournament with a 7-7 record against some tough competition.
For first-year Maiden head coach Naomi Mock, Ronan’s performance at the tournament was a step in the right direction for her and her team.
“I thought that we played really well this weekend,” Mock said. “We are getting better and better every game, plus it was a great chance to get some experience for our younger players.”
A fourth-place finish and a 7-7 record at the tournament was a welcome sight for a Maiden program that has seen a few rough seasons recently. According to Mock, it may take a little time for it to all sink in with this squad.
“We played at 11 on Saturday morning and then didn’t play again until 2:30 in the afternoon. It was a long day of sitting, but that means you are doing well,” Mock said. “The girls said they are used to playing back-to-back games at the end of tournaments and then going home, they didn’t realize that having to wait a while between games means you are one of the better teams. It really is a new experience for the girls. I don’t think they have realized yet just how well they are doing.”
Ronan opened the tournament with a split against Hamilton before picking up wins over Stevensville, Anaconda and Corvallis. Day one ended with a pair of losses to a tough Dillon squad who ended up taking second in the tournament.
“Dillon was just a very smart team,” Mock said. “They certainly didn’t overpower us, they just played a very smart game.”
The Maidens fell victim to another Southwestern A foe in their opening match Saturday morning, falling to Frenchtown in two sets, 25-18 and 25-20.
After a wait of several hours between games, the Maidens fell to Hamilton in the third-place game, 25-16 and 25-22.
Ronan saw the second set slip away as the Maidens jumped out to a 22-14 lead before letting Hamilton score 11 straight points to win the set.
“Things were a little tougher for us on Saturday,” Mock said. “If our defense would have been a little bit better, then we could have played some of those games closer than they wound up.”
Despite the tough ending to the tournament, Mock says she is very pleased with her team’s performance.
“We just have a lot of small stuff that we need to work on,” she said. “That and we need to recover from the wear and tear that comes along with a two-day tournament. We need to work on moving our feet and our transitions as well as reading hitters and reading the defense. Overall, our performance was good. Now we just have a few things we need to tweak.”
Mock hopes that this tournament was just a small taste of what is to come for the Maidens.
“We came away with high spirits, but the girls are pretty tired after such a long tournament,” she said. “I think they may have underestimated how hard this tournament would be physically, but it is something they will have to get used to if we are going to do well down the road.”
The Maidens will be in action again Thursday as they seek their second conference win of the season at home against Whitefish.
Summary
Ronan split with Hamilton
25-13, 18-25
Ronan def. Stevensville
25-16, 25-14
Ronan def. Anaconda
25-20, 25-22
Ronan def. Corvallis
25-21, 25-23
Dillon def. Ronan
25-14, 25-15
Frenchtown def. Ronan
25-18, 25-20
Hamilton def. Ronan
25-16, 25-22
