Lady Raiders drop one, win one

by John R. McNeil II

The Lady Raiders split last week’s matches on the road at White Swan on Tuesday and Waterville on Thursday.

In a 3-1 loss at White Swan, the Lady Raiders still impressed their head coach.

“The second match we came from behind to win,” Nate Pituraschatit said. “This showed a lot of character, as they didn’t quit. They stayed confident and focused and pulled through.”

At Waterville, LR took the first game 25-12, but for the rest of the match the Shockers kept it close until the Lady Raiders closed the deal in the fourth game 25-11.

In the third game, setter Hailey Chaney was injured, but Mikel Friedlander stepped up.

“She kept our team together and kept the offense moving,” Piturachsatit said.

Their win at Waterville came from superior serving, he said, including a new serve: the float.

“I finally have them convinced that it is a very effective serve, and several of our girls are using it extremely effectively,” Piturachsatit said. Leading in that effort were Darien Seylor and Taima Carden.

The Lady Raiders return to action on Saturday at home against the Riverside Christian Crusaders at 1 p.m.

Game scores

LR vs. White Swan: 22-25, 27-25, 21-25, 23-25

LR vs. Waterville: 25-12, 26-24, 23-25, 25-11