A little extra preparation

Ephrata works out kinks for the playoffs

EPHRATA - The Tigers are ready for the playoffs.

That is the belief head coach Kim Crown carried away from Thursday's sweep against Quincy. It was complete consistency, Crown said as Ephrata walked over the Jacks 25-7, 25-12 and 25-14.

"That is what I wanted to see," Crown said. "We have worked on continually playing at our level, no matter who the opponent we play and we did that for the most part."

Ephrata had already clinched a playoff spot and with the CWAC district playoffs a week away, were tightening up a few loose ends with the Quincy game in preparation of next weeks rendezvous.

Crown said she moved Holly Hutchinson to outside hitter, moving her from the middle-hitter position, due to the loss of another injured player on the Tigers' roster.

But, the factor that gave Crown her confidence for the playoffs was the level of consistency shown by her volleyball team.

"We haven't been playing very consistent and this was a good way for us to get headed into that direction," Crown added.

From the beginning of the first game, Ephrata set the tone and never let up. Makela Kaleohano started the game from the service line and led the Tigers to an early 6-0 lead. Britney Ratigan moved the lead to 9-1, before Kellee Neal and Laura Tinnell put the game away.

Tinnell added three of her five aces in the first game.

Quincy stepped up its play in the second game, matching the Tigers' point-for-point, but Ephrata's serving proved too strong, picking apart the holes of the Jacks' alignment to win 25-12.

The Tigers built a 15-7 lead on the Jacks in the third game, but Quincy rallied to close the gap at 15-12. Aaryn Aliment's first serve was unreturnable by Ephrata, then unforced errors by the Tigers closed the gap and put the Jacks back in the game.

Crown called a timeout leading 15-12 with Quincy on their heels. Following the timeout, the Tigers went on a 10-2 momentum spree to put the game away at 25-14.

"When I called the timeout and they turned it around, that is what I like to see," Crown said.