Canby sweeps volleyball series against Hood River Valley

HOOD RIVER — The host Hood River Valley (HRV) volleyball team lost, 3-1, to visiting Canby on Oct. 2, three days after the Cougars had beaten the Eagles by a 3-0 score in Canby. HRV Coach Emily Curtis said her team played much better in the rematch of the back-to-back Northwest Oregon Conference matches vs. Canby.

“They [Hood River] played honestly really well tonight compared to how we showed up on Monday against them,” Curtis said. “Hitters finally made their adjustments up until that last set. We just got to keep working on finding those open spots. I tell the girls all the time, it’s not about how hard you hit a ball, it’s finding their weak spots in their defense. So, just working on placement of the ball.”

In the first set, Canby separated with four straight points for a 15-11 lead, which prompted a Curtis timeout. HRV battled back late in the set with an Emily Doss kill, an ace from Lyla Mall and a defensive error by Canby to cut the lead to 22-21. Canby led 27-26 when a miscommunication by HRV resulted in a mistake, and the Cougars won the first set.

The Eagles built an early 11-7 lead in the second set, but Canby rallied to go back in front 15-14, eventually stretching the margin to 20-14. HRV stormed back with six straight points. Later, HRV’s Eleanor Buser spiked one past Canby to make it set point, then HRV closed out the set 25-23 after a long rally ended with a Canby attack into the net.

Set three followed a similar pattern, with both sides trading points before HRV surged ahead, 12-8. Canby clawed back to tie it at 15, and after a timeout, the Cougars controlled the rest of the frame to win, 25-20.

The fourth set opened with Canby jumping out to a 3-0 lead en route to a 25-15 win.

Canby improved to 6-3 in league play after the win, while HRV finished the week at 3-6 in the NWOC. The Eagles were scheduled to play at Parkrose on Oct. 6 and then play a double dual Oct. 8 at Wilsonville against the host Wildcats and Putnam. HRV swept Parkrose and Wilsonville 3-0 in the first meeting between the teams this season; the Eagles lost 3-0 to Putnam.

“Parkrose is going to be a great game,” said Curtis. “A confidence builder for sure. I expect them to come out ready to go as a team. We should come out strong. So, I’m excited for that game in order to build some confidence out of them. I think they need that.”