Tuesday’s night’s ECIC IV match was pretty much the season in a nutshell for the Tonawanda High School girls volleyball team.
The Warriors started out slow against ECIC IV rival John F. Kennedy, but once they got rolling, everything was just fine.
THS shook off a first-set loss and posted a 22-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-16 win over the Bears on Tuesday evening.
“We started a little slow but we all worked together as a team and then we got better,” senior Hannah Reid said. “I felt like that’s how we need to play the rest of the season.”
That’s a microcosm for the season for Tonawanda, which started off 0-6 but since then has bounced back and reeled off three wins. They hope to see that continue.
“We started off a little rough but now we’re getting into the groove of things,” senior setter Kristen Toth said. “We’re coming together as the season goes along.”
There were some solid stats for the Warriors but nothing amazing. Allysa Prytula had seven assists, six kills and seven digs; junior Corynne Wildrick added six kills and seven digs and Reid had 29 digs. That’s how Tonawanda rolls this year with a balanced effort each night.
“We play as a team; that’s exactly what this team is made up of,” Warriors coach Renee Smith said. “We don’t have an all-star, we have six players – seven counting the libero – that all add to the team.”
The first two games were back-and-forth with JFK – a team with 11 seniors on the roster – taking the early lead. But it wasn’t long before the Warriors took charge in the final two.
“The girls just played the game we wanted to play,” Smith said. “We took care of the ball, we took care of our three hits and we executed when we needed to execute.”
And Smith and the Warriors hope to see that improvement continue to shine down the stretch run.
“From here on out, I think we can get the games we know we can get,” Smith said. “The girls are playing collectively together and they’re playing very hard.”
Tonawanda hopes the best is yet to come with success late in the year,
“I’m definitely looking forward to playoffs,” Toth said. “I think that’s what I’m hoping for. That’s what we’re working hard for.”
“We’re definitely connected as a team,” Reid said. “We work well together so that’s good. If we keep doing that, we’re going to succeed and continue to win.”
Commentaires