Things were looking up. In the first game in the volleyball match against Southwest, South stayed more than 10 behind, failing to return spikes, and not spiking back enough. It looked as though the girls couldn’t get control.
Junior and captain Ellen Sachs explained, the team was “just jittery.” The game ended 13-25. “We wanted it so bad, and it just got to us,” said Sachs.

But the second game was close. We kept it tied, South blocked almost every attack and more of Sachs’ spikes landed on Southwest’s side of the court. As coach Larissa Littlewolf said, “we came together as a team.”

Then came the play that decided the match, right at the end of the second game The ball went back and forth between the two teams, every time you thought it was going to hit the floor a player dived from nowhere to hit it back up. It seemed to go on forever when in reality it may have lasted only 20 seconds, but that’s a long time in volleyball.

Finally, it hit South’s side of the court. The fans screams were deafening. One more play and Southwest had won 2 games, the second ending 25-27. This was South’s final chance to win the match.

In the third game it was clear the team had lost hope. “it’s a mental game,” said senior captain Madie Spartz, she said the team wasn’t “mentally strong enough” for the third game. It went much like the first, South lagged behind by about 10 and stayed there. Southwest made a few mistakes, but the third game ended 17-25.

“In the end we beat ourselves,” said Littlewolf.