Troubadours take down Devils on the court

By Tarin McMorrow,
Bluedevilhub.com Staff–

The Davis High women’s volleyball team faced off against and lost to its rivals, the St. Francis Troubadours, in three matches on the road on Wednesday, Sept. 22.

The Troubadours landed the first point and quickly jumped into the lead with a score of 8-2, which quickly increased to 10-5, St. Francis dominating.

The first game got a shaky start for Davis, but by the end it was apparent that the team had become more comfortable and began to up the level of play.

After St. Francis won 25-16, the Devils gathered in a between-game huddle and discussed strategy.

Junior Allison Chambers supplied the first serve of the second game, and DHS got out to a strong start, tying the score 13-13 midway through. However, St. Francis dominated the second half and took the win 25-17.

Game three was DHS’ last chance to come out with a possible victory, and again the Blue Devils got out of the gate quickly, with juniors Mitra Varjavand and Addison Lyons blocking a hard hit that otherwise would have added to the Troubadours’ lead in the first few minutes of the game.

Junior Karlie Kijanka, teamed with senior Hazel Jackson, blocked a St. Francis blow to tie the game 3-3.

Unfortunately, game three continued with little development for Davis, and the final game ended with the triumphant Troubadours winning 25-16 over the devastated Devils.

Davis is still a very new team, with only three previous varsity players and eight seniors graduating last year, which makes it hard to properly coalesce as a team, according to head coach Julie Crawford.

“That’s what we’re trying to establish, making sure we’re the same team every time we step out on the court,” Crawford said. “It’s taken some time for the girls to click and gel and be comfortable with each other, and a lot of teams they come up against have played together for a while.”

Junior Samantha Moore agreed that the game did not go as hoped, and that “a lot of small things made a big impact that hurt [us].”

But there is plenty of time for the team to practice these little things and come back stronger, as it is only the second league game of the season, and DHS will play eight teams twice before the season ends.

Moore is excited about the prospect of a rematch.

“I’m excited for our home game on Oct. 15 against St. Francis, at 6 p.m. in the small gym, where there is that home court advantage,” she said.

In addition to the contest being a match between rivals, it was St. Francis volleyball team’s first home game, and a ceremony was conducted in honor of one of their players who was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma last year.

The Troubadour had to sit this season out but has encouraged the team eagerly from the side lines at every game. The St. Francis players all wore lime green ribbons and jerseys in support of their teammate. In her honor, the Davis players wore matching hair ribbons to show their support and also created a thoughtful care package for their opponent.

“It was awesome, the ceremony was super cool, I really feel the experience and I was glad to have been a part of it,” Moore said.