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Sailors bounce back, thump Glenwood

Joel Reichenberger
Steamboat setter Raya Duryea passes the ball back toward her hitters Saturday as the Sailors beat up on Glenwood Springs in three sets.
Joel Reichenberger

— The easiest way to explain the difference between the Steamboat Springs High School volleyball Team’s lopsided loss to Battle Mountain on Thursday and its resounding victory against Glenwood Springs on Saturday is to point to the opponent.

The Demons are good this year and won their own tournament, an event Steamboat attended. They aren’t the Huskies, however.

Still, Steamboat coach Wendy Hall said the difference was far more than the opponent.



Her team hit better, defended better and served better, and it ran away from Glenwood in three sets picking up a much-needed win.

Steamboat won, 25-23, 25-23, 25-9.



“It was nice to see us take care of business, because we’ve been struggling in that department,” Hall said. “We haven’t been taking care of any business past the 18th point. We seem to lose confidence and lose any kind of aggression. It was awesome to see us close the deal today.”

The improvement spanned the whole team. Setters Raya Duryea and Abi Berlet combined for 37 assists. Thursday, the team had just 14.

Anna Allsberry lead the team in kills, racking up 14 while Este’ Wilkinson had 10.

The team battled through tough spots, pulling out the second set, despite trailing late. A Micah Feeley kill gave Steamboat a 22-21 lead. A block set up game point and a Wilkinson kill gave the Sailors that win.

It was consistent, too.

Wilkinson had five consecutive points early in the third set, while Duryea later served 11, taking the game from 13-8 to 24-9.

“It meant a lot,” Duryea said, considering the turnaround. “We played a lot better as a team. We kept the energy up and came in to work for every point. We had such a good energy today.”

The win improves the Sailors to 5-6 on the season and 1-1 in the Western Slope. They may feel good today, but the girls face a tall task if they hope to stretch the Glenwood victory into a winning streak.

Next up is a game at 11 a.m. Saturday at home against Eagle Valley, 7-3, but 3-0 in the league, and with a three-set win against Battle Mountain already under their belt, the early leader to win the Western Slope League.

“We have the opportunity to get so much better,” Duryea said.

To reach Joel Reichenberger, call 970-871-4253, email jreichenberger@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @JReich9


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