The Dalles senior Maddy Bradford (middle) slams down one of her four kills in Tuesday’s Columbia River Conference volleyball match played versus Hermiston at Kurtz Gym in The Dalles. The No. 4 Riverhawks picked up their eighth non-tournament sweep overall, fourth in league action.
The Dalles senior Maddy Bradford (middle) slams down one of her four kills in Tuesday’s Columbia River Conference volleyball match played versus Hermiston at Kurtz Gym in The Dalles. The No. 4 Riverhawks picked up their eighth non-tournament sweep overall, fourth in league action.
Like a hurricane, The Dalles volleyball team is causing collateral damage to every team in its path.
With a flurry of digs, momentum-changing blocks and a dizzying offensive attack, the No. 4-ranked Riverhawks showed their appetite for destruction in another three-game sweep Tuesday over Hermiston in a Columbia River Conference matchup in The Dalles.
The victory over No. 18 Hermiston was TD’s eighth consecutive non-tournament sweep and fourth straight whitewash against a league opponent.
“I think these girls, there’s no doubt in my mind, that they are hungry for more,” said head coach Neticia Fanene. “They have struggled in the past, so now they are going to take all they can.”
Every varsity player on the roster contributed in some form or fashion, as three different players had assists, four had at least one block and seven slammed down kills.
Sierra Watson had five digs, three aces and a kill, Keatin Logue added an ace and a dig, Lindsi Logue dished up two assists, Bailey LeBreton notched a kill and a block, Jodi Thomasian picked up two kills and a dig and Sierra Renard also had a block for the Riverhawks, who won the first set by a 25-20 score.
“I think Hermiston had a great opening set in the match,” Fanene said. “They fought hard and they played really well. I thought we did an awesome job of maintaining our calmness. We didn’t panic. We knew what we had to do. We passed the ball, we set the ball and we hit the ball.”
After the close opener, TD began to create some distance on the scoreboard and sent its message in the second set.
The Hawks held a 12-7 lead, and then an ace serve by Watson made it an 18-9 score.
Lori Cimmiyotti, Maddy Bradford and Iliana Telles tacked on back-to-back-to-back kills to make it a 25-12 romp and put TD ahead in the match 2-0.
In the third set, the Hawks led 4-1, 13-6, 21-11 and a Telles kill swelled the lead to 23-12.
With the score 23-15, Renard and LeBreton combined on a block to the floor and on the ensuing sideout, Hermiston hit the ball out of bounds to cap the sweep, 25-15.
“I think tonight, we had a really good blocking game,” Fanene said. “We got a few more touches on the ball. I tell the girls that our focus is on taking away space, we are not trying to block the ball. It is not like you have to get a stuffed block every time. We can deflect the ball back to our defense and look for the pass.”
Cimmiyotti had 12 kills, three blocks and 15 digs, and Telles added seven kills, three aces and 12 digs.
Bradford had four kills, two aces and a team-high 20 digs, Deysi Velador added 15 digs, Savannah Bass totaled 27 assists and 10 digs, and Kayla Seibel notched five kills, two blocks and two digs.
Although the Riverhawks are winning at an alarming rate, they are not going to rest on what they did in September, but are looking down the road to October.
“We won our last tournament (Saturday at Parkrose) and what Ticia tells us to do is just, ‘it’s a win and we need to shake it off, respect that win and then come back on the court like it is 0-0 again and just keep coming back harder,’” Seibel said. “Coming off of so many wins, it is making it easier and easier for us just come into every match off that momentum and keep pushing and keep winning.”
The Dalles (14-1 overall, 4-0 league) hosts Pendleton (4-5, 1-3) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
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