~by Dustin Teays for The Scranton Journal
The Paton-Churdan Rockets volleyball team was able to pick up its third win of the season this past week.
The Rockets had a busy week this past week with four matches and one of those was against Colo-Nesco where the Rockets came away with their third win of the year, 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-17, 25-14).
The Rockets had plenty of positives to celebrate with their third win. With the win, it’s the most matches they have won in a season since the 2020-21 season where they won 10 matches.
Moving forward through last week the Rockets also took on the Ogden Bulldogs where they fell 3-1 in sets (6-25, 17-25, 26-24, 25-14) but showed their determination picking up a win in one of the sets.
The Rockets then faced Ar-We-Va where they fell short 2-0 (18-21, 12-21) and then rounded out their week with a match against West Harrison where they fell in two sets 2-0 (13-21, 18-21). Both of those matches were a part of the Rolling Valley Conference Tournament that rounded out their regular season matches for the year.
The Rockets closed out regular season matches with a record of 3-12 on the year and have built on the positives as the season has worn on.
“The team has grown a lot by not giving up easily and they keep fighting throughout the entire match. They are starting to win more sets and getting more attacks at the net,” head coach Makayla Sparr said.,
They should return all but their senior in Grace Cullum next year. Cullum played a pivotal role in this program throughout the years.
“She (Grace Cullum) has been an awesome leader this year and has really shown up for her teammates. Grace stepped up to the plate as being the only senior as a leader and as someone on her team they could rely on for support,” Sparr added.
The Rockets were expected to open the first round of Class 1A Region 5 play against the Madrid Tigers at home on Monday.
P.C. 3 Colo-Nesco 1
Kills: Mia Russell 12, Alivya Smith 8, Kaliyah Minnihan 7, Ella Tasler 3, Holly Miller 1
Assists: Grace Cullum 14, Ella Tasler 6, Mia Russell 3, Alivya Smith 2
Digs: Mia Russell 17, Alivya Smith 12, Grace Cullum 11, Ella Tasler 8, Kaliyah Minnihan 7, Maggie Reed 4, Holly Miller 1
