The Rainier High School volleyball team’s 4-0 start to the season, which included three sweeps, came to a crashing halt against Cascade Christian School in a road non-league contest on Wednesday, Sept. 18.
The Cougars swept a Mountaineers team that had only lost one of its previous 13 sets. Rainier head coach Carrie Ooms said her players weren’t as mentally prepared for the contest as they should have been.
“It was a really tough match. We had a few people that were sick, but they still showed up to play and suffered through it. I think, mentally, they weren’t ready to play them. They didn’t quite know what to expect,” she said. “Rather than coming in and just giving it their all, they were not as aggressive as what we normally play.”
The Mountaineers had five days to prepare for a road matchup with Toutle Lake, a team that tested Rainier last season, on Tuesday, Sept. 24. After dominating the first set, 25-16, the Mountaineers couldn’t pull away from the Ducks in the second set, falling 27-25. Rainier put the game on ice in the final two sets, taking the third frame, 25-22, before sealing the victory in the fourth, 25-21.
Allyson Ooms led the way with 18 digs and 15 kills; Janess Blackburn added 16 digs, 14 kills and two aces; and Brooklynn Swenson dished out 21 assists and tallied eight digs.
Carrie Ooms said the Mountaineers watched some film on the Ducks, who were one of only two Central 2B League teams to defeat Rainier last season.
“We watched some film on them to connect with their key players and utilize their weaknesses, but we definitely tried to focus on our strong spots and work more as a team,” she said.
On Thursday, Sept. 26, Rainier showed even more improvement in a non-league contest at Morton-White Pass, sweeping the Timberwolves, 25-16, 25-15, 25-14. The Mountaineers, who were without senior Acacia Murphy, were led by Allyson Ooms again by way of her 18 digs and seven kills. Anika Plowman chipped in nine kills and six blocks, while Swenson dished 15 assists and recorded five digs.
“We played competitively. We didn’t drop down to a lower level of play. We also didn’t have Acacia Murphy, so we had Lexi Beckman, an eighth grader, fill in for her spot, which was exciting,” Carrie Ooms said. “She did great things. I think everybody stepped up as a team.”
The Mountaineers (5-1) welcomed the C2BL’s newest school Mossyrock to Rainier on Tuesday, Oct. 1, but results were not available before press time. A much-improved Onalaska team will come to Rainier on Thursday, Oct. 3 for the Mountaineers’ first league contest of the season.
With a road matchup against C2BL juggernaut Adna coming up next week, Ooms wants her team to focus on improving each day and to avoid looking ahead on the schedule, as well as to return to full health.
“Right now, we’re taking it one game at a time and focusing on who’s coming up. We’re focusing on our strengths and weaknesses for each game,” she said.
