It was slow going to start for Spanish Fork in Thursday’s match against Payson, as the Dons fell behind in both the first and second sets.
Spanish Fork made adjustments, however, and its senior core broke through as the Dons claimed a gritty 3-0 sweep of the Lions.
“We allow our players to simply see what’s happening,” said Spanish Fork coach William Clawson. “We’re not trying to immediately fight fire with fire. That comes later when we know exactly what we’re doing.”
The early deficits started with the serve receive, as Payson tallied plenty of aces to go along with its rallying hits.
The Dons adjusted with better passes and attacked the Payson block more effectively but still trailed 23-20 down the stretch of the first set.
They bounced back with some tough hits, though, to take the first set 26-24.
A similar pattern emerged in the second set as Payson got off to an 8-1 start thanks to some early aces, but luckily for Spanish Fork, its seniors steadied the pace.
Katelyn Ralph, Addi Jensen and Macall Condie were dominant against the Liondefense, as the three combined for 15 kills in the second set.
Senior setter Sarah Harwood was there along the way to set them up.
“It’s been a couple years in the making,” Clawson said. “We’ve wanted this plan to hatch this year, and it’s been planned out for a while to have these three seniors really be just like a triple threat.
“If as soon as one gets hot, the opponent starts reacting to them, and then the second one gets hot and the opponent is nowhere to be seen, and then the third one gets hot, and it just kind of is a snowball domino effect from there.”
Payson held on to a slim lead in the second set until Spanish Fork tied it 18-18, and then took a 23-21 lead after a block from Condie.
Then it was the Lions’ turn to force extra points, tying the game 24-24. Once again though, Spanish Fork held on for a 26-24 second-set win after a kill from Ralph.
“We’ve played together for a long time,” Condie said of her senior teammates. “We just have that chemistry, just of knowing who gets what ball and when. It gives us a lot of momentum going forward, so it’s awesome.”
In the third set, the pattern was flipped, and Spanish Fork took the early lead while Payson turned it around and tied it 12-12.
But for the third time, the Dons figured it out with better hits against the Payson block. Spanish Fork regained a small lead and finished the Lions off with a 25-22 third-set win.
“We just need a reminder from time to time to just let the game come to us and to not chase it,” Clawson said. “All the credit goes to our girls for just recognizing that, because they’re the ones that see it and they’re the ones that are reading it. All the credit goes to them.”
With the win, Spanish Fork holds on to its top spot in Region 7 with a 3-0 record. The Dons have yet to lose a single set in region play.