Lady Wolves volleyball team ends season at state

It wasn’t how the Green River High School Lady Wolves volleyball team wanted to end the season, but they didn’t go down without a fight.

On Thursday the Lady Wolves took on Thunder Basin at state.

It was the first time they had ever played this team and the teams were pretty equally matched.

Head coach Rikki Shantz said the Lady Wolves played pretty good defense and they battled the whole game, however, Thunder Basin was just having a great game.

“They didn’t make mistakes. They didn’t hit really hard, but they also didn’t have very many hitting errors either,” Shantz said.

In the end, the No. 2 seed of the east, Thunder Basin, came out on top in four sets, 25-23, 23-25, 25-23, 25-23.

After losing the first game at state, Shantz felt the Lady Wolves weren’t shaken and were still focused.

“Our mindset was still really good,” Shantz said. “I know the girls wanted to win that first game and we all feel like we could have, but we were focused on winning on Friday.”

With the first game behind them, the Lady Wolves focused on their next opponent -- Campbell County. Once again, the two teams seemed well matched.

“(We) played so much better on Friday,” Shantz said. “Our defense was more active and we hit the ball better.”

One area the Lady Wolves need to work on is performing in high pressure situations. All of the state experience will help the team in the future.

However, for this year is was two and out for the Lady Wolves when they lost to Campbell County in five sets, 29-27, 19-25, 25-19, 20-25, 15-13.

“Most of us were pretty sad. It has been one of the best seasons so it’s hard to have it be over,” Shantz said. “Not only were they successful on the volleyball court, but we were so close. These are great kids and it was so fun to coach them.”

Despite both losses, Shantz was happy with how the Lady Wolves performed at state.

“They definitely came to compete,” Shantz said. “I was happy with the way they played.”

Shantz has a special message for the seniors leaving the team.

“I want to thank them for working hard to develop a strong culture,” she said. “They are great volleyball players and even better teammates and leaders.” 

All-Conference

Katie Banks

Andri Dewey

Hannah Hix

All-State

Katie Banks

Andri Dewey