Eagles earn win over Devils

WILSON CREEK – The Soap Lake Eagles (4-3) earned a convincing road win over the Wilson Creek Devils (3-7) Wednesday evening. Both teams were looking to overcome losses from the day prior. 

“We needed the hype and we needed to encourage each other” said Eagles senior Liana Sushik. “We have a lot of people that are close on the team and at the end of the day we need to find a way to hype ourselves up no matter what the mistake was.” 

The Eagles started the night off strong on both offense and defense, taking control of the first set and winning it 25-13. The Devils went into the next set with more energy, keeping the game close, but ultimately would fall to the Eagles 21-25. 

Going into the third set, the Eagles continued their stride while the Devils were unable to respond which ended the set 25-12 and giving the Eagles a 3-0 victory. Sushik said this was a great win for the Eagles to get back on track following their loss against the MLCA/CCS Lions.  

“You’re going to have in your season one to two bad games and that’s good that they’re coming right now because it’s all mindset right now,” she said. 

Sushik said this is the best point for a team to start making a turnaround and adjusting to creating a more positive mindset and is especially important for the two freshmen on the team to learn now while they’re young. This will become even more important as the teams head into the end of the regular season and potential playoff berths. 

“Confidence plays a big role in this because it’s the way you attack the ball, the way you go for the ball,” she said. “It’s all about how you’re going to play the next point.” 

Devils head coach Shawn Shahan said her players fought hard and she was proud of the performance that they put up in spite of the loss. She said the biggest lesson for the Devils is that they need to always be ready for anything going into games. 

“You never know what’s going to happen out there so that’s something that we are going to be working on is making sure that everybody is ready at all times,” said Shahan.  

She said moving forward the Devils will be working on changing their rotations and getting the players to stay aware at all times whether they are on the court or on the bench. 

Eagles head coach Niki Noble said her team had a noticeable shift in how they played Wednesday against the Devils compared to Tuesday against the Lions. She said the team looked like they were really having fun on the court and had an increased level of confidence early on. 

Noble said this confidence earned them a strong lead during the first set, but going into the second set they became laid back in their play which allowed the score to get closer than she would’ve liked, but they came back together and remained focused throughout the remainder of the night. 

“They went out there focused during the live ball, but then were able to goof around and have fun with each other in between serves,” she said. 

With the volleyball season now reaching its mid-point, both teams are now focusing on where they are at in terms of play and where they need to adjust going into the remainder of the season as playoffs approach. 

For the Eagles, Noble said they have had to play without one of their middles, Brook Dana, which has been an adjustment for the team, but has allowed other players to shine. Entering the midseason she also said the team has not peaked yet and will be put to the test next week as they play five week days in a row. 

“They're going to have to really take care of themselves,” said Noble. “Get enough sleep, eat right and make sure that they’re ready for each one of those matches.” 

Shahan said the Devils are hopeful for what they can accomplish in the second half of the season. The team has no seniors this year and is mostly made up of underclassmen outside of the five juniors on the team, but she still feels like they can build into something successful this year. 

“These girls have a lot of heart and they have a lot of fight in them,” she said. 

The Devils’ next game is on the road on Monday against Cascade Christian Academy at 6:30 p.m. The Eagles will return home Tuesday to play against Garden City Academy at 6 p.m. 

BOX SCORE:

WLSN: 13-21-12: 0
SPLK: 25-25-25: 3 

Wilson Creek Roster: 

Name, Jersey 
Cheyanne Dailey, 0
Lila Sackmann, 1
Kaydence Leslie, 2
Aubree Mora, 3
Naomi Chiles, 6
Reece Voss, 7
Keeley Cook, 8
Debi Horn, 11
Riley Larsen, 12
Allyson Downing, 13
Jaylah Alvarez, 15
Aubree Larsen, 16 

Soap Lake Roster: 

Name, Jersey 

Mylee Dana, 1
Olivia Noble, 2
Ellie Schopf, 3
Sage Hart, 4
Liana Sushik, 5
Tanya Zubritskiy, 6
Marina Zubritskiy, 7
Maryanna Miller, 9
Brooke Dana, 10
Alyson Zufall, 11 

    Allyson Downing, a junior for the Devils, drops down to bump the ball up preventing a score from the Eagles. Devils head coach Shawn Shahan said the team fought hard in their match and she believes in their abilities moving forward.
  

    Ellie Schopf from the Eagles readies herself to make a bit hit back to the opposing Devils. Eagles head coach Niki Noble said the team needs to work on keeping their momentum going from the start of a game to the end.
  

    Devils junior Lila Sackmann gets ready to go for a kill during Wednesday’s matchup against the Eagles. The Devils are a very young team this year with the oldest players on the team being the five juniors and the rest being underclassmen. Moving forward head coach Shahan said she wants the team to be better prepared for any challenge that might come their way.
  

    Marina Zubritskiy from the Eagles bumps the ball back over the net during Wednesday’s game. Eagles head coach Niki Noble said the team still has a lot of room for growth as they head into the second half of the season.
  

    Keeley Cook from the Devils readies herself to hit the approaching ball during Wednesday’s game. Moving forward, head coach Shahan said she wants the team to be better prepared for any challenge that might come their way. The Devils are a very young team this year with the oldest players on the team being the five juniors and the rest being underclassmen.