The Dolores Bears defended their home court on Tuesday in their homecoming week match against the Mancos Blue Jays.
The Lady Bears jumped out to an early lead in game one, propelled by aces by Abby Jones and Alyana Frasier. And then a block by Harlie Valdez gave Dolores a 10-5 advantage.
Morgan Rose answered with a block of her own in an attempt to spark the Lady Jays, but Mancos errors down the stretch and great play around the net by Jordan Elder and Valdez led Dolores to a 25-9 win.
Dolores head coach Gina Hollen said that while her team was focused after the big win, she reminded them not to let up because anything could happen.
She was correct in her assumption, as the Lady Jays looked like a different team in the second set, bouncing back in game two with much more inspired play.
“We came out flat, we were scared, we were timid and we were afraid the first game,” said Mancos head coach Brittany Lang. “The second game we came out with a little bit of fire and we had more enthusiasm and a little more confidence.”
After falling behind 8-4, Nicole Hess and Rose gave the Blue Jays a lift with consecutive blocks to jump in front 9-8. Then their teammates joined them above the net, as Magdalena Halls scored on a block and Mackenzie Benitez dropped in a spike.
But tied at 15, the Bears went on a run.
Valdez served an ace, Josie Majors dropped in a powerful left-handed spike and Elder tallied another kill as Dolores was able to hold off the Jays for a 25-22 win.
The two teams hung together again for the first half of the third set. And although an ace by Rose would bring Mancos within three points, trailing 16-13, sophomore Tatum Majors came up big for the Lady Bears down the stretch as they completed the sweep, capped off by an ace by Elder to win 25-17.
Mancos falls to 1-7 on the season and 0-5 in the San Juan Basin League after the loss. The victory snapped a five-game skid for Dolores, and the Bears are now 2-7 on the season and 1-3 in the San Juan Basin League.
“It’s huge,” Hollen said of the win. “The girls proved that they could come together and play as a team the entire match. So we just need to keep up the spirits.”