Tigers Cinderella season ends in loss to eventual champions

CEDAR RAPIDS— “We believe in you, we believe in you,” the fans chanted during last Tuesday’s Pep Rally in the Red Oak High School gym. The chant had been the message throughout the 2010 campaign.

It continued last Wednesday night in the Tigers state match against top-ranked in 3A, Mount Vernon, even when Red Oak trailed in the third set late.
“It always helps to hear that, for your fans to be behind you, even when the score looks like it does,” Red Oak Head Coach Angela Montgomery said.
The Tigers were swept in their first round match against Mount Vernon, the No. 1 ranked team in Iowa and No. 6 in the nation.
“They are a phenomenal team,” Montgomery said. “They knew where to hit the ball, where the weaknesses were and a good team will do that.”
Mount Vernon opened the first set with a 4-0 run when Gabi French put the Tigers on the board with a kill. The Mustangs lead eventually grew to 9-2.
Red Oak scored and got to within six points several times in the first set. However, Mount Vernon scored consecutive points to maintain the lead.
The Mustangs maintained the lead 18-10 after a Red Oak timeout. An ace by Kristine Boatman led to a three point run for the Tigers. Mount Vernon’s lead increased eventually in the first set and they won it 25-14.
The Mustangs scored seven kills and six aces in the first set.
Mount Vernon opened the second set with a 10-1 run. Red Oak scored points, but still found themselves down by 10.
The Mustangs scored eight-straight points, to take a 23-6 lead. Red Oak scored two more points, but Mount Vernon won the second set 25-8.
Red Oak stayed close early in the third set, but Mount Vernon jumped out to an 11-2 advantage.
The Mustangs tallied three consecutive points before the Tigers scored again. After Red Oak’s third point, Mount Vernon scored six consecutive, extending the lead to 20-3.
The Tigers scored two more points in the set, but Mount Vernon won 25-5. Red Oak ended up with 15 kills, with Gabi French leading with six.
In digs, Kristi Yardas led the Tigers with seven and Adrienne Mahoney led in assists with eight.
“It’s a shame that that’s the way our season had to come to an end, because of the way we’ve been playing recently,” Montgomery said. “It’s easy to get down on yourself looking at the score, but I think we’ve got to play it point-by-point and leave it all on the court.”
With the loss, Red Oak finished the season with a 22-12 record. It’s the Tigers first appearance in the state tournament since 2007.
Montgomery said the team knows they could beat the best if they played their game.
“It should show the girls up in the stands and our seventh, eighth grade girls, that it’s possible that we can get here, she said. “I don’t think we gave up tonight at all.”
Mount Vernon was crowned the state champions of 3A on Saturday after defeating West Delaware, 3-1.
Red Oak will lose several seniors to graduation, including Ellaine, Carly and Brittany Walker, Emily and Rachel Pierson, Makeal Magneson Kristine Boatman and Emileah Betts.
However, Montgomery thinks that the tournament appearance will be something to build off of for the future.
“We’re returning key people in our rotation, not that the people we are losing aren’t key,” Montgomery said. “You pick up what’s lost and re-load. I can’t say enough about my seniors. We will miss them terribly.”