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link Lady Rattlers Kayla Cherry and Jessyka Cooksey jump to block the hit from the Rangerettes hitter during
pool play Friday at the Snake Pit. The Lady Rattlers placed sixth in their tournament.
QCS Senior Writer
The Tucumcari Lady Rattlers believe they fell short of their goal, placing sixth at their volleyball tournament on Saturday but they came away with some great experience and confidence, said Lawrence Sena, Lady Rattlers head coach.
Sena said the level of competition at the tournament was high and that it gave the Lady Rattlers a chance to benefit from playing multiple teams with different styles.
“The team made some great strides and can continue to build on that as the season moves on,” Sena said.
Sena said one of those competitive teams was the Logan Lady Longhorns, won the tournament, defeating Mora in three sets. He said the Lady Rattlers will have a chance to match up against the Lady Longhorns against Thursday at Logan.
“They have got a lot of talent on their team and some potent hitters,” Sena said.
Sena said the Lady Rattlers know the Lady Longhorns are going to come at them from every angle. He said he is confident in their blockers ability to block or touch their hits. The team will have to work on limiting their errors in the serving game, Sena added.
“We have to focus on not making mental errors to give ourselves an opportunity to win,” Sena said. “The girls have the desire and talent to match up well against Logan.”
The Lady Rattlers are going to be a challenging team and the Lady Longhorns are looking forward to the match-up, said Robert Young, Lady Longhorns head coach.
Young said against Tucumcari, the Lady Longhorns will be mindful of the hitting power of Melissa Gardea and Kayla Cherry. He said their libero (defensive specialist), Kaycee Lease, plays solid defense and will be covering the floor making kills (points) difficult to find.
Young said the benefit to playing against a team like the Lady Rattlers is their hitters are bigger than any Logan will face in their upcoming schedule. He said the matchups give their defense a chance to work on blocking the hits and their footwork on defense.
Young said Thursday’s game will help prepare the Lady Longhorns for the Fort Sumner Tournament Friday and Saturday in Fort Sumner.
Game time: 5:30 p.m., Thursday at Logan.