Outlaws win one on the road

Rongi Yost, Correspondent | Last updated Sep 25, 2018 12:0pm0

Cody Rheault count

The Outlaws split their league matches last week.

The Lady Outlaws posted a four-set road win over Stayton on Tuesday, September 20, but two days later fell in a grueling five-set, three-hour marathon match at home against Sweet Home, which ended with scores of 19-25, 25-14, 24-26, 25-22, and 13-15.

It was a devastating loss, and broke the Lady Outlaws' league game winning streak of 76 victories.

Sisters defeated the Eagles with scores of 25-16, 25-14, 23-25, and 25-8. The Outlaws have been fighting illness and started out the match slow, and missed their first three serves. They were able to pull it together, settle into their game, and rattled the Eagles with tough serves and great passes to post wins in the first two sets.

Coach Rory Rush said, "We made some rotation changes in the third set, and we found ourselves out of sync."

The Outlaws lost their seven-point lead in the third set due to unforced errors, and the Eagles gained momentum and took the set by a slim two points.

Sisters regained their composure and played a great fourth set from start to finish. The team played with confidence and had control of the game from the get-go. They held the lead the entire way and recorded the win.

Rush told The Nugget that freshman Greta Davis, who plays middle, had a great game. Davis has been a force at the net for the Outlaws all season long.

"Greta brought energy and intensity every time she was on the floor," said Rush. "Her ability to block and hit around their block was key to the success of our offense and defense."

Rush added, "Tonight's game was learning to play present, and to play with confidence. We continue to work hard, fine tuning our game as we head into our next match. These girls, despite feeling sick, never gave up."

Thursday's match against Sweet Home was a battle between the last two undefeated teams in the league, and both knew it would be a hard-fought contest. Last year, both league matches ended in a five-game thriller, and this go-round proved to be no different.

Sisters started off tight, and nerves caused unforced errors, which proved to be a common theme throughout the match. The Outlaws lost by six in the first set, but turned it around and came out strong in the second, cleaned up their errors and controlled the game to earn the victory.

In the third set, the Outlaws jumped out to an early lead and at one point held a 10-point advantage. Unforced errors let the Huskies back in and they tied it up late in the game and eventually won by two.

Sisters rallied after the tough loss, and dug in and took the fourth set by three, which forced a fifth and final game. The Outlaws started out fast and furious and quickly went up 10-5, but unfortunately unforced errors and a relentless SH squad saw the Huskies crawl back and eventually post the 15-13 win to take the match, and claim the No. 1 spot in the Oregon West League.

The Lady Outlaws will play at home against Newport on Thursday, September 27.

Outlaws claim trophy at tourney

The Sisters Invitational Volleyball Tournament hosted 20 teams on Saturday, September 22, including the top five teams in the 4A OSAA rankings. After battling the entire day, the Outlaws came out on top in the championship game against Tillamook, and claimed the prize.

Pool play began in the morning with the Outlaws matched up against Klamath Union, Madras, and Burns, who is a powerhouse at the 3A level. Sisters cruised through with a 6-0 record to earn the top seed in the Gold Bracket in afternoon play.

In the first round, the Outlaws had a rematch with Burns, and won with scores of 25-15, 25-19.

With the win, they advanced to the semi-finals and faced league foe Sweet Home, who had just beat them two days earlier in a brutal five-set match. This time around the Outlaws posted the victory with scores of 25-20, 25-18, which put them in the championship match.

Sisters came out on a mission and were poised and determined in their match-up against the Tillamook Cheesemakers, who beat their league rival Valley Catholic in the semi-finals in three tough sets to advance to the finals.

The Outlaws controlled the game from start to finish, and great net play from Sophie Silva and accurate serves from sister Sam Silva were big boosts to the team. The Outlaws started the first set with an 8-0 lead and held onto that momentum to the end. Sisters' strong serves were too much for the Cheesemakers to handle, as they were never able to find a rhythm in their offense.

Coach Rory Rush said, "After losing a tough league game against Sweet Home on Thursday, our goal coming into today was to find confidence, learn from our loss, and grow as a team. Today, we were able to accomplish this. We showed composure and confidence, and we were able to put together complete games. A championship today was a great way for us to kick off the second half of league play."