The Weatherford Lady Eagles volleyball team hosted the conference tournament Saturday at Weatherford High School and finished fourth in the tournament.
“Finishing fourth was not the outcome we wanted for this tournament,” coach Sandi Barr said. “We did some things really well but made a lot of mistakes both offensively and defensively.”
Lakin Green, Jordan Hoffman and Ireland Helton each made All-Conference Honorable Mention. Kaydence Bryson and Sydney Barr made First-Team All-Conference.
“I am very proud of each of them,” Barr said. “I love how we were able to present all conference awards because volleyball players in Western Oklahoma rarely get recognized for all the hard work they put in. It was nice to see other coaches acknowledging that work and their ability as well.”
The Lady Eagles beat Clinton and Tipton 2-0, but lost to Elgin 2-1. They advanced to bracket play where they beat Tipton 2-0 in pool play to advance to the semifinals, Cache beat Weatherford 2-0 in the semifinals.
Barr said they made some mistakes in games which cost them.
“I think they can learn to move on from those mistakes and learn from them,” Barr said. “We also saw some great hitters which helps us adjust our defense and work on getting our blocks set up correctly as well as timing.”
Weatherford 2, Clinton 0
Weatherford had no trouble in the first match, defeating Clinton 2-0. They won the first game 25- 12. In the second game, they struggled, but pulled out a 25-23 win. Barr said Weatherford had to play hard at the end, because Clinton is a team who never gives up.
“Clinton plays with a lot of heart and they do not give up,” Barr said. “That pushes us to not let up but to keep playing hard.”
Weatherford 2 Tipton 0
Weatherford beat Tipton 2-0, winning the first game 25-16 and the second game 25-7. Barr said she brought in some other players for this game and they played really well.
“Tipton has improved since we played them last,” Barr said. “Also, I brought in Natalie Pekah to get some playtime in the middle blocker position as well Dacia Miranda to help give Green a break from playing all the way around. Both did a great job knowing their roles and jumping in.”
Elgin 2, Weatherford 0
Weatherford lost to Elgin 2-0. Barr said the Lady Eagles were not ready to play in this set.
“Our offense was struggling as well as our defense,” Barr said. “Their middle hit some spots which we knew she would but struggled to get there and defend.”
With this win, Weatherford was able to advance to bracket play and they took on Tipton in the first round.
Weatherford 2, Tipton 0
Barr said she did not play Green due to an injury against Elgin, but she is proud of her girls for overcoming this challenge.
“They fought hard against us and I did not play Lakin at all due to her injuring her ankle during the Elgin game,” Barr said. “The score was closer than it should have been but we pushed on and secured the win to move on in bracket play.”
Cache 2, Weatherford 0
Weatherford dropped the first game to Cache, then during the second game Cache came out with strong serves. Barr said Weatherford seemed to wear throughout the tournament.
“It was very frustrating but we have got to learn to push past that frustration and maintain our fight no matter what,” Barr said. “Sydney and Kaydence had played continuously all day. I know all of the girls were tired but we have got to learn to push past those moments and work as a team.”
Barr said she is going to make a few changes in the rotations, since Aviree Roberson should be back this week.
“I am going to make a few defensive changes and start working Aviree back into the rotation to strengthen our defense,” Barr said. “We also will work on hitting by getting lots of swings in to improve our offense as well. I think our biggest challenge will be mental though so I also plan on doing some mental training with them.”
Weatherford returns to action, 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at home against El Reno and it is their final home game of the 2020 season. Regionals are this Saturday at Bethany.
“I want to see a win Tuesday, but even if that does not happen, I want to see a more consistent offense with fewer errors,” Barr said. “I also want to see our defense handle whatever they bring against us that night. This game will be great preparation for regionals on Saturday and show us exactly the areas we need to work on the rest of the week to be ready for Bethany.”
Piedmont 3, Weatherford 2
The Weatherford Lady Eagles volleyball team was up 2-0 on Piedmont Thursday night, but Piedmont made a strong comeback to win 3-2.
“This was a disappointing loss,” coach Sandi Barr said. “We are struggling to finish the last couple of games. However, we are missing Aviree Roberson right now and she brings so much to the game.”
Weatherford won the first two sets 25-20 and 25-22. After that, Piedmont won the third game 25-9, won the fourth game 25- 20 and the fifth game 15-10. Despite the loss, Barr said they improved their serving percentage from the Tuttle game even under pressure.
“Our defense was much stronger than against Tuttle for the first couple of sets,” Barr said. “We covered blocks better and were able to get balls that we let drop earlier in the season.”
Barr said her team has been struggling mentally.
“Tonight’s performance was completely a mental thing,” Barr said. “I am struggling to get the girls to overcome this, but we have less than a week to fix it though.”
Barr said the girls also need to work on intensity and being more consistent.
“We need to not let up our intensity no matter the score,” Barr said. “We need to focus on finishing every play consistently.”