Lady Tigers sweep 1A Jamboree

The Encampment Lady Tigers (1-1, 1-1) fell to the Little Snake River Rattlers (2-0) September 10 in Baggs. The first two sets the Lady Tigers closed in on the Lady Rattlers 20-25 and 18-25. The third set was not as close with a 11-25 score.

“They got frustrated,” Lady Tigers Head Coach Janice Peterson said.

The Lady Rattlers are a good team and know how to expose our weaknesses, Peterson said. “I reminded the girls they need to stay in a good mindset. They have to believe in themselves.”

During practice last week, in preparation for the 1A Jamboree, the Lady Tigers made specific goals for the year and one of them is to win as a team. That goal shined through Friday and Saturday as they had a five-match sweep defeating all the teams they played in the 1A Jamboree in Encampment. In their first match against the Upton Lady Bobcats, their commitment to their goal showed through in their play.

With well-placed serves by Junior Sami Anderson, the Lady Tigers kept well ahead of the Northeast conference Upton Lady Bobcats (1-0); (4-1) winning the first set 25-19. All the Lady Tigers hit the floor during the match, each getting a chance to show their skills on the court.

The Lady Bobcats were determined not to let the game end easily and performed an exciting volley with the Lady Tigers to try and keep them from scoring the winning point. Their effort failed.

Senior Kyenna Jackson’s powerful kills kept the Lady Bobcats from scoring. “Upton is a good team,” Peterson said. “The girls kept their energy and focus,” which led them to a victory in the first set.

The Lady Bobcats were determined to get even in the second set and kept the score tied up to 18 points. The Lady Tigers allowed the Lady Bobcats two more points before answering with seven to win the game 25-20.

The Lady Tigers worked as a well-oiled machine while setters Anderson and Jordan made sure their hitters were ready to deliver a kill.

Jackson is a powerful hitter, whether in the front line, in the back line or as a server. The senior made all conference last year and Peterson expects that to happen again along with several other girls on the team.

Peterson said she is proud of all the girls as they work on their passing and defense skills. “All of them have stepped up,” she said, “we have good leadership with all the hitters at the net.”

Friday afternoon the Lady Tigers played against the Niobrara County Lady Tigers (Lusk) and walked away with another win. Lusk kept the score tied to eight points before the Lady Tigers pulled out the stops and started roaring back. They kept possession of the serve for five points before the net stopped their scoring frenzy. Lusk snuck in five points to score 14 points, but it was no match for the 22 points the Lady Tigers had accumulated. Lusk did stall the Lady Tigers for a few minutes, even though Jackson was a monster on the front line smashing the ball back to the Lusk players. Lusk scored five points to the Lady Tigers one and it looked as if the game might go into overtime. With the score tied at 23, Savannah Fagan goes to her knees for a dig and Regin Stewart sets it up for Jackson who pushes it over the net past the front line of Lusk’s defense. Unable to retrieve the play, Lusk falls behind and the Lady Tigers push for the win 25-23.

In the second set the Lady Tigers and Lusk matched point for point until 3 points when the Lady Tigers took charge and easily outscored Lusk 17-8. Eckerly Pickett was the power behind the kills in the set with her digs and kills, she was by no means alone. Each team member stepped up to keep well ahead of Lusk. The set ended with a 25-17 score.

The Lady Tigers had to work hard to keep Southeast conference Southeast Cyclones (1-0); (2-0) from winning the match Friday night. The Lady Tigers pulled out close wins in both sets 27-25 and 25-23.

At one point in the set, the Lady Tigers were down seven points.

“The team went after the ball with great intensity resulting in a complete momentum change,” Peterson said. “Their mindset shifted into playing to win and maintain aggressiveness.”

Peterson was impressed with the way the girls worked collectively as a group. She said this was critical when playing tough teams and it was the best she had seen from the Lady Tigers.

Saturday, a valley-wide power outage prevented matches from starting on time. Some teams chose to play in the dimly lit gym, while others opted out because of safety concerns, according to head coach and activities director Janice Peterson.

Encampment would get their chance on the floor with back-to-back games Saturday beginning at 1 p.m and the team did not disappoint.

The Lady Tigers took on Arvada-Clearmont Lady Panthers (0-2); (2-5) from the northeast conference division. The Lady Panthers were fresh from the day before and it showed on the floor. Pickett used her kills to lead the team to 10-5. The Lady Tigers closed in on the scoreboard with the Lady Tigers scoring two points to the Lady Panthers five making the score 13-10. The game was close until the Lady Tigers got the ball back and Stewart took advantage of the set with her serves. She scored four continuous points before a timeout was called. When they returned to the court, Steward scored three more well-placed serves and the Lady Tigers were leading 18-12.

The Lady Panthers got control of the serve and scored four more points and then the Lady Tigers roared again and stomped the Lady Panthers 25-16. Jackson performed a kill that earned the ball back into the Lady Tigers serve and there was no looking back.

In the second set the Lady Tigers had to work a little harder as the Lady Panthers were out for revenge. The score stayed even with the Lady Tigers leading 17-15. The Lady Tigers left the Lady Panthers in the dust with a 25-18 score.

Immediately following the win against the Lady Panthers, the Lady Tigers were matched up against the Northeast Conference Hulett Lady Devils (1-0); (2-3).

The Lady Tigers kept a strong lead throughout the first half of the first set and were ahead 17-11. They fell into a slump as the Lady Devils had a hard hitter who challenged the Lady Tigers with her serves and kills. The Lady Devils tightened the score to 17-15 when Coach Peterson yelled “You’ve got to play through it.”

That was all it took.

The Lady Tigers shook it off and started playing as a team again. The Lady Devils could only score one point against the recharged Lady Tigers and the set would end 25-16.

The second set was a tight set with each team taking the lead one point at a time. Both teams were fighting to win the set, and it showed in the score. When the set was 20-18, the Lady Tigers roared to life once again and they scored five unanswered points to win the set 25-18.

After the game, Pickett, who has been playing volleyball since the fifth grade, talked about sweeping five matches in two days.

“It’s a pretty good feeling for all of us,” Pickett said. “We had some struggles, but we worked through them.”

She credited focusing on the warmups and the setters, Anderson and Jordan, having a good sense.

“We trust them,” Pickett said.

Pickett she was excited for the Saratoga game Tuesday night. She feels they have an advantage as they are used to the Lady Tiger court.

“It is crazy to play with the atmosphere, because it is so loud with the student sections,” Pickett said. Hearing the crowd is very motivational.

Pickett believes her team has a lot of potential this year. The sweep in the 1A Jamboree seems to confirm that belief.

In the game against Saratoga, Peterson hopes the Lady Tigers will bring a lot of energy and grit to the court.

“Serving will be a key ingredient and being aggressive at the net will help our game,” Peterson said.

“We know Saratoga will be well prepared for us, so we have to work together to get the win.”

Statistics from the 1A Jamboree were not available as of press time because of the power outage.