NORTON SHORES – The Reeths-Puffer volleyball team is under new direction this season with first-year head coach Syann Fairfield. and that new direction looks promising, despite some of the results not being overly positive yet.
On Thursday, the Rockets lost to O-K Green conference rival Mona Shores in four sets, via scores of 16-25, 20-25, 25-18 and 21-25, but the team’s progress and scrappiness was on display.
R-P lost to Mona Shores three times last year, and the Rockets have struggled against the Sailors and three other O-K Green conference powers for the past several seasons.
R-P's Mackenzie Danz (10) goes for a kill. Photo/Nick Fuller
Recently, however, the Rockets managed to win a set against one of those powers, Caledonia, and on Thursday they won a set against the Sailors.
That means they are chipping away at their goal, with a roster of mostly juniors and sophomores who have a lot of talent.
“I’ve seen a lot of improvement,” Fairfield said about the growth she has seen since preseason practice in August. “It’s been every single girl. They’ve all been very dedicated. They’re really a great team of girls to have.”
While the loss is disappointing, it still marked great growth for a program that was swept last year by Mona Shores, and failed to even score in double digits in two of the three sets in one of the matches.
Mackenzie Danz tips the ball over the net. Photo/Nick Fuller
In Set 1 on Thursday, Mona Shores jumped out to a 6-2 lead before ultimately cruising to the 25-16 victory.
The Sailors again started hot in Set 2, leading 19-11, before the Rockets came to life, scoring nine of the final 15 points before falling 25-20.
R-P broke through in Set 3.
The Rockets took an early 6-1 lead, Mona Shores cut its deficit to 12-10, then R-P clamped down, going on a 13-8 run to capture a very encouraging 25-18 victory and force a fourth set.
R-P's Addison Whitaker. Photo/Nick Fuller
“We’re right there with our execution,” Fairfield said about taking the set from Mona Shores. “I think sometimes I’m throwing too much at them, though, and their minds spin too much because of that.
“I have to clean up some things so we can finish and end up on top in more of these sets and matches, like we’ve shown we can do.”
In Set 4, it looked like the Rockets’ fight was wearing off, with Mona Shores jumping out to 4-0 and 8-2 leads.
But Reeths-Puffer once again dug deep and eventually tied the score at 14-14, before the Sailors won 11 of the final 18 points to take the set and the match.
R-P's Leah Zuniga. Photo/Nick Fuller
“I’m super proud of the fight we showed,” said Fairfield, whose team is now 13-10-3 overall and 1-3 in O-K Green play. “The girls did a great job of empowering each other and pointing out the good that they were doing. That’s something we’ve been working on, and I’m really proud to have seen it.
“Effort has been a big thing in our gym, and I think we really showed that tonight by fighting how we did.”
Peyton Radel and Lexie Danz had 12 and 10 kills, respectively, for R-P. Kate Tindall had 33 assists and Leah Zuniga served four aces.
R-P's Kate Tindall. Photo/Nick Fuller
Zuniga led the defense with 18 digs, Tindall added 16 and Lexie Danz had 10.
Makayla Jewett chipped in two blocks.
The Rockets will next be in action next at Jenison in another test against a tough conference team.
