Tigers come back to defeat Fillies in three

SHENANDOAH – Red Oak volleyball started off slow in their match against Shenandoah, as they trailed in every game by at least three points, against a Shenandoah team that is rebuilding after losing five seniors from last season.

The biggest area of concern for Red Oak Head Coach Angie Montgomery was serving, where the Tigers made 18 errors in the match.  Ten of those 18 errors came in the first game.
After trailing in the first game, 7-3, the Tigers came back to win 25-18.
In the second game, the Tigers trailed by as much as 11-6 before senior setter Adrienne Mahoney served through an 11-point Tiger run.  In the match, Mahoney led the Tigers serving 19 of 24 with seven aces.
“It’s exciting when you get on a roll like that,” Mahoney said after the game.  “I wasn’t really expecting it, but it is a lot of fun when you start picking up aces.”
Mahoney also led the team with 16 assists and picked up four digs on defense.
The Tigers won the second game 25-17 as their hitters, Gabrielle French and the Pierson twins, Rachel and Emily, led the way on the front line.
French finished the match with 13 kills on 22 attempts.  Rachel Pierson was eight of 14 hitting, followed by her sister Emily who was six of 21 in kill attempts.  Rachel Pierson also was a team leader with 14 assists as a setter.
In the third game, the Tigers led to begin but slipped behind early, 7-4.
“I don’t know if we got complacent or if we just lost focus or what happened in the last game, but I was glad to see the girls step it up to finish it up,” Montgomery said about the last game.  “It wasn’t pretty, but we got the win tonight.”
Mahoney settled in again from the serving line and helped the Tigers to a 25-18 win to complete the sweep.
With their win over Shenandoah and their previous win over Creston, the Tigers improved to 2-0 and returned home to face Glenwood Tuesday.  They travel to Griswold Saturday for the Griswold tournament where they will face IKM-Manning, Exira, and Griswold, among others.