High school girls volleyball: Corner Canyon cruises to straight sets victory over American Fork

Corner Canyon made easy work of American Fork by winning in straight sets 25-20, 25-20, 25-15 on Thursday.

Corner Canyon wasted little time in displaying the dominance, going on a 7-2 run to start the match. American Fork tried to chip away at the deficit, but a kill by Corner Canyon’s Halle Bills sealed the opening set win for the home side.

“We’re doing a really great job as a group. We’re continuing to develop our teamwork right now. We’ve constantly been trying out different lineups and what those look like. The girls are working really, really hard and adjusting to different situations, which I love,” said Corner Canyon head coach Mindy Ricks.

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It was much of the same story in the second set. American Fork cut its deficit to 18-15 but Corner Canyon constantly had an answer for the hard-hitting American Fork side.

“American Fork is a really good hitting team and a really smart hitting team. They send different shots at us which challenges our defense. Our defense had to figure some things out that they haven’t seen this year,” Ricks said.

It looked like American Fork might have a chance to turn things around in the beginning of the third set as the visitors piled the pressure on Corner Canyon by getting out to a strong 8-4 lead.

Corner Canyon did not panic and stuck to its game plan, however, resulting in a 7-0 run to take control of the set and eventually creating some breathing room to cruise to the victory.

“What I really love about our team is even if we fall behind early, they can go out and continue to chip away at the lead while remaining disciplined. We were then able to develop a good service game, take charge and not look back,” said Ricks.

For all of the success that Corner Canyon has had and is continuing to have this season, Ricks knows her team still has some work to do, particularly when it comes to the lineups and communication out on the court.

“My message to the team was that we are not satisfied and we need to continue to work on our teamwork,” Ricks said. “We need to be able to build trust in each other and the system that we are running.

“I am really proud of the team for working hard and working through the constant challenges that are thrown at us.”