Lady Warriors win tense, competitive match vs. Buffalo

Shaking off a loss earlier in the week, the Worland Lady Warriors showed their grit in a road victory in Buffalo last week.

Falling to Cody 3-0 (25-7, 25-20, 25-28) on Oct. 1 in a 3A Northwest match in Cody, the Lady Warriors started slow, but once they worked through those nerves, they settled in.

"They got through those nerves in the first set and came to play," said WHS volleyball coach Joanna Peterson. "That second set we were right there with them the whole time. They just need to have that confidence in them the whole time."

After that first set, the Lady Warriors did a better job of controlling the ball. They didn't allow Cody to go on long runs and were sharp with their serving.

"They started controlling the ball and didn't panic. They ignored the crowd and just played. Our serves did really well against Cody, and we only missed three serves. We do have to finish. When we get that good pass and set, we have to finish. We've got to read blockers better and even go around the block. If they're blocking a certain way, we need to change the angle so we don't hit right into them," said Peterson.

Leading the way for the Lady Warriors in Cody was Anna Richardson with six kills, Elly Julson with two aces and Kalistynn Crippen with eight digs.

On Oct. 3, Worland went to Buffalo to take on the Lady Bison. The team went into the match with the mindset of putting the Cody match behind them and did just that.

"It was Buffalo's homecoming, too. I've told the girls that someone is going to make mistakes but what's more important is how you come back. They were excited and didn't let the Cody game bother them. They were able push through and show they were prepared to win," said Peterson.

The Lady Warriors beat Buffalo 3-2 (26-28, 28-26, 20-25, 25-18, 15-13) in a thrilling match, spoiling the Lady Bison's homecoming.

"We had some fun and exciting volleys. The girls did not let the ball touch the ground. They went until the whistle and so did Buffalo. It was exciting to see the girls come back and the match had a lot of back and forth, I was proud of them," said Peterson.

Senior leader Anna Richardson led the way again for the Lady Warriors, putting up 20 kills, eight blocks and three aces in the win.

Julson had 11 kills, Addi Estes had 20 digs and three aces, Maddi Robertson had 12 digs, Crippen had 11 digs, Annie Page had five blocks, and Lillie Richardson had three aces.

The win in Buffalo was another impressive moment for Worland this season. Three of the five sets were decided by two points or less, and the Lady Warriors won two of those sets by staying calm under pressure.

"We've done a lot of pressure games scrimmaging JV and put the score 19-23. We do it every day in practice and the big thing is not to panic. They don't force the pass or hit but everything is under control. They did a really good job of that in Buffalo. They were diving and helping each other out with missed passes and were still able to make a play on it," said Peterson.

As Estes has worked back from injury, the senior has only been able to play in the back row, it's given opportunities for other Lady Warriors to step up like Ashlyn Hamer, Allie Stamatakos and Lillie Richardson.

That depth could prove critical for Worland as the regular season winds down and the postseason draws near.

"It's been good for the girls to get varsity experience in those pressure moments. They're more comfortable and I can just turn to them and ask if they're ready to hit without any hesitation," said Peterson. "They are comfortable and are ready to play. That's exciting to see."

The Lady Warriors host the Hot Springs Lady Bobcats today at 6 p.m. While the Lady 'Cats are in 2A now, Worland won't take them lightly.

After today's match, the Lady Warriors are in Pinedale for the 3A West conference duals on Friday and Saturday.

The conference duals have always been important as it's been a way for the West teams to get a look at each other ahead of regionals. But with the regional format changing, this week's duals are more important.

Previously, regional seeding was No. 1 through No. 4, and the team matched against the other quad, No.1 vs No. 4, etc. Under the new tournament seeding, the tournament is seeded No.1 through No. 8, regardless of quad.

"It's not going to be easy, and we've got to be ready for a game," said Peterson about Thermopolis. "These conference duals are going to help us for regionals. It doesn't matter what side you're coming from and these are really important games for us. We start with Lyman on Friday at 3 p.m. I know we've beaten Lyman but things change. We've got to keep breaking down each team and finding their week spots and what defense fits best with that team."