WINNEMUCCA - With just a handful of practices under its belt, the Winnemucca Junior High School eighth-grade volleyball team began its season on Tuesday at home against Fallon.
Even though the Greenwave are nearly three-quarters of the way through their year, the Warriors were able to pull out a 25-19, 12-25 and 15-12 victory.
"We basically had four days of practice to get ready for the match," said WJHS head coach Miranda Santos. "I am very happy with the way the girls played. We had a little bit of a let down in the second game, but the girls rebounded well in the third game."
Hannah Hillyer had a run of serves in the opening game to give Winnemucca an early advantage. The middle blocker finished with two digs, two kills and an ace.
Aimee Brandon, who is new to the team from Oregon, finished with four blocks, three digs, two kills and two aces. Santos noted she played well along net and with her height, Brandon is a big presence on the net. Annaliese Gabica and Elise Rose each had two aces. In addition, Gabica contributed six digs.
"Our serving was huge for us," Santos said. "We didn't have that many errors. It was fun to watch Brooklyn (Waller) try her jump serve."
The coach noted the back row play of Olivia Snow. She is the defensive specialist for the Warriors and had five digs and was a perfect 7-of-7 from the service line.
"She did a great job and had a few amazing digs," added the coach. "She is a great defensive player, but I use her as a server as well."
McKenna Jones, Alanna Miller, Tiana Herrera and Waller share time on the floor as setters, and Waller led the Warriors with six assists, while Miller had two. Miller also had five digs.
Madison Montero is one of Winnemucca's top outside hitters and had two kills, two blocks and nine digs.
"She is turning into a strong player," Santos said. "She is very consistent. The times she got set the ball, she nailed the hits. She is just a natural volleyball player with a lot of talent."
The coach added she was pleased with the play of Amaya Herrera as well as Kaity Sample. Santos also noted the improved play of Lexi Allen.
Manager Samantha Newman has been huge help to the team as well, according to the coach. Santos says she is a big inspiration to the girls.
"I was very impressed with the girls and they played very well together," Santos said. "I implemented the rotation at the end of last week and they had all of two days to practice it. They are all intelligent girls and are all hard workers."
Winnemucca is scheduled to travel to McDermitt on Saturday, March 2, for the first round of Tri-County play set for 10 a.m.
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