Hitting the floor for a volleyball match on Thursday evening, one had to wonder if there would be any residual effects for the Philomath High squad after an emotionally-draining five-set loss on Tuesday to nemesis Sweet Home.
The team needed to avoid going through the motions against an opponent that has struggled to put wins together this season.
“We had a tough practice yesterday and I think that caught us in the mindset of it may be Woodburn, who’s not a great team, but we still need to come out and compete,” PHS senior Mackenzie Hiner said.
Philomath had a few difficult stretches in the third set but still pulled off a sweep over the visiting Bulldogs, 25-8, 25-8 and 25-19. The Warriors dominated those first two sets with long scoring runs behind effective offensive attack, solid defensive skills and some unforced errors by the opponent mixed in.
“We were just trying to work some stuff out and mix up our offense a little bit,” Newton said.
Woodburn trailed by as many as 11 points in the third set but chipped away at the deficit to get to within five at 20-15. Philomath regained its composure to close out the win, the final point coming on Ashlynn Barron’s tap at the net.
“I like when they have little moments of humility,” Newton said. “In this third set for example, I just think they get a little too lax and I told them, ‘you guys need to make sure you have respect for your opponents. It was good to see them humbled by a third set that was closer and also just trying to pay attention to our system and what they need to be better at and improve on.”
Hiner, part of a senior-heavy roster for the Warriors this fall, said, “It’s nice to know that there are times when we struggle but we can come back from that.”
Philomath was strong over those first two sets with hitting percentages above .400 but that fell off dramatically in the third set and the Warriors finished the evening at .253. Sage Kramer led the way with 13 kills. Ashlynn Barron and Hiner finished with nine and eight kills, respectively.
At the service line, the Warriors had 21 as a team with several up and down the lineup. Reagan Larson had a team-high six, Kramer served four and both Barron and Taylor Roe had three.
In the setting department, Larson finished with 30 assists and on defense, Roe had a team-high 13 digs. Kramer was also in double digits for digs with 10.
Philomath (6-7 overall, 5-4 Oregon West) was scheduled to leave for Bend on Friday for an overnight trip to the Clearwater Classic. The Warriors are slated to play bright and early on Saturday at 8 a.m. against West Albany in the first pool play match.
The Warriors will then have some time away from competition to prepare for the Oct. 14 regular-season home finale against Sisters.
“Our goal really is just to finish league strong,” Hiner said about the team’s aspirations for the rest of this season. “We are hoping to get a big win over Sisters at home for our Senior Night but our goal is to get a play-in game and try to make it to state.”
Philomath 3, Woodburn 0
Thursday, Oct. 7, at Philomath HS
TEAMS (RECORDS) SET 1 SET 2 SET 3 FINAL Woodburn ( 8 8 19 0 Philomath (6-7, 5-4) 25 25 25 3 PHS STATISTICAL LEADERS Kills: Sage Kramer 13, Ashlynn Barron 9, Mackenzie Hiner 8, Abigail Brown 3, Reagan Larson 1, Ahnika Tryon 1.
Aces: Larson 6, Kramer 4, Barron 3, Taylor Roe 3, Clara Stanley 2, Kori Galvan 2, Brown 1.
Block Assists: Hiner 1, Brown 1.
Assists: Larson 30, Roe 3, Brown 2.
Digs: Roe 13, Kramer 10, Larson 5, Brown 4, Barron 4, Hiner 2, Galvan 1.
Conference Standings
(As of Oct. 7)
Oregon West Conf Pct. All Pct. SW SL Cascade
Sweet Home
Sisters
Philomath
Stayton
Newport
Woodburn7-1
7-2
6-2
5-4
3-6
2-6
0-9.875
.778
.750
.556
.333
.250
.00013-2
8-4
12-3
6-7
7-10
2-9
2-12.867
.667
.800
.462
.412
.182
.14338
24
33
21
22
9
68
13
10
23
29
29
35
Thursday, Oct. 7
Philomath def. Woodburn, 25-8, 25-8, 25-19
Cascade def. Stayton, 25-10, 25-15, 25-17
Sweet Home def. Sisters, 25-20, 25-12, 25-18
Saturday, Oct. 9
Philomath at Clearwater Classic (Bend), 8 a.m.
Cascade at Seaside Tournament, 8:30 a.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 14
Cascade at Woodburn, 6 p.m.
Newport at Sisters, 6 p.m.
Sweet Home at Stayton, 6 p.m.
JUNIOR VARSITY
Philomath 2, Woodburn 0
Thursday, Oct. 7, at Philomath HS
| TEAMS | SET 1 | SET 2 | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodburn | 11 | 19 | 0 |
| Philomath | 25 | 25 | 2 |
| TEAM NOTES |
|---|
| The JV team’s record improves to 11-7 on the season. … Junior Grace Bennett had five kills and two aces. … Sophomore Lorelei Schell served eight aces. … Junior Brooke Moade finished with three aces. … Sophomore Ava Theurer had three kills. … The JV team is not scheduled to play again until Thursday, Oct. 14 against Sisters. |
JUNIOR VARSITY 2
Philomath 2, Woodburn 0
Thursday, Oct. 7, at Philomath HS
| TEAMS | SET 1 | SET 2 | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodburn | 4 | 9 | 0 |
| Philomath | 25 | 25 | 2 |
| TEAM NOTES |
|---|
| The JV2 squad goes to 6-1 on the season following a dominating performance against the Bulldogs. … The squad is scheduled to play next on Oct. 16 in a Philomath-hosted JV2 tournament with Central, Molalla and Sweet Home. |