on tournament, team performance
The Lady Crusaders volleyball team competed in the Weatherford Classic Tournament this weekend and finished as runner up in the silver bracket.
“It was a lot of good competition. There were many opportunities to learn and get better and improve by playing better opponents,” Coach Erin Basinger said.
CBA began the day by playing Weatherford in pool play. The game went to three sets, the maximum amount for the day, but Weatherford earned the win in that game. The Lady Crusaders then played Blanchard and took a loss there, but they won the next game against Cascia Hall.
In tournament play, CBA defeated El Reno, but Weatherford once again beat the Lady Crusaders for the silver bracket championship.
“As the day went on, there was improvement. We figured a few things out. Obviously we didn’t finish like we wanted to or have the results we wanted,” Basinger said.
Throughout the tournament, the CBA team earned several points because of well-placed “free balls.” A free ball is a return that comes in the form of a pass rather than an attack. Typically, opponents can use a free ball to their advantage and set up an attack to earn the point.
This was not always the case for the Lady Crusaders. The free balls they sent over the net were often placed in parts of the court which were hard to reach. Basinger said, “We’ve been working on finding ways to score points. It doesn’t have to be pretty. We’re just looking for ways to be aggressive.”
Along with the difficult free balls, CBA also scored many points from front-row kills, several of which came from middle-hitter Elle Bittle. Bittle is a junior, and she helped her team both defensively and offensively.
“She’s been working hard,” Basinger said concerning Bittle. “She took some time during the summer to work on some things. She’s kind of our go to person. She’s a steady leader on the court.”
The Lady Crusaders have several games left for the season, including one tournament in Chickasha and another one in Altus before Regionals in October.
► Elle Bittle serves the ball Saturday in the game against Weatherford.
Kimberly Lippencott/WDN