High school girls volleyball: Mountain Ridge defeats Riverton in straight sets to remain perfect in region play

Mountain Ridge displayed plenty of poise and calmness on its way to a straight sets victory over Riverton Thursday, 25-23, 25-11, 25-18.

Things didn’t start out so easy for Mountain Ridge, with Riverton keeping things close and trading points throughout the first set before the Sentinels edged out the Silverwolves for the opening set win.

“The first set was a tough battle,” said Mountain Ridge head coach Bryan Nicholson. “We really tried to limit some of their best players at the net and worked to get our serves going a little bit throughout the set, so I was happy with our service line and then also our middles. That was kind of the key for us.”

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While the Sentinels had won the opening set, Nicholson quickly sensed that his team lacked a little bit of urgency and looked to become a little too complacent at times in the early going.

“The team knew they had to play with a little more sense of urgency. I think we get a little too comfortable sometimes,” said Nicholson.

“So they were able to turn the switch on, and again, going into our middle, we like that matchup against their middles, so we tried to take advantage of that.”

Mountain Ridge got the message loud and clear, taking the second set comfortably. While many players on the team are new and may lack playing experience, Nicholson was pleased with the attitude and calmness that his team not only portrayed Thursday against Riverton but up to this point in the season.

“I really liked our composure,” Nicholson said. “We’ve had some close and tight matches this year that have put us in some tight situations. For not having a ton of experience on the team from last year, the girls already are starting to get the veteran feel a little bit so it’s nice to see that.”

Things aren’t going to get any easier for Mountain Ridge as it continues region play. With an undefeated region record and a nine-match win streak, Nicholson knows his team is going to get the absolute best its opponents have to offer, and the group will need to be up for it.

“We know we’re going to have battles, and we know what we are going to have to do,” Nicholson said. “When you’re leading your region with an undefeated record and trying to go for that region title, everybody’s trying to bring their A game for you.

“The composure that we displayed tonight will go a long way in helping us during those games.”