Volleyball team achieves victory and good sportsmanship

The Lady Wolves volleyball team has kept stepping up throughout the season, taking home wins and having a player recognized for her good sportsmanship.

The Green River High School team's most recent victory came against the rival Rock Springs Tigers in a conference match last Thursday.

"It was a great night for our whole entire program overall," Head Coach Jessica Demaret said about Thursday's competition. "Our freshman team started out by winning in two sets, and our sophomore team won their match in two sets. JV won, again in two sets, and then varsity finished off the night by taking our match by three."

The varsity team won their three sets with scores of 25-22, 25-14 and 25-22. The pressure of the rivalry and the intense atmosphere got to the team during the first set, according to Demaret, leading them to be down to Rock Springs early on. However, the girls came back and kept rolling, Demaret said, keeping the score close throughout and making sure they got to 25 points first.

"We were just happy to go enjoy the awesome atmosphere that comes along with a rival and come out on top," Demaret said.

The coach credits the team's recent success in part to already having won several matches this season, the first of which came in the Cokeville tournament.

"It's been a long time coming for Green River volleyball," Demaret said of the win. "So we were glad to get that monkey off of our back there."

The team continued to get over their previous losing streak by winning half of their matches in the Evanston Border Wars tournament over Labor Day. Seeing the team's improvement over the first two weeks and getting those wins under their belts has had a big impact, according to Demaret.

"I think the bottom line is it just gives us some confidence moving forward," she said. "The girls are competing with almost every team that they step on the floor with. . . . We're competing and we're putting ourselves in that position now that they're learning to get over that hump and actually get to 25 first in those sets. It just has built a lot of confidence in our players over the last few weeks."

The Lady Wolves will need confidence as they go up against their next opponent, taking on Kelly Walsh High School in Casper today. Kelly Walsh is currently undefeated and ranked first in the state, Demaret explained. Still, the coach is excited for the challenge.

"We're just looking forward to going and competing against the best and just getting better every week," she said. "We're looking forward to seeing a good volleyball team and seeing how we compete against them."

Going up against Kelly Walsh, and getting ready to take on Evanston and Jackson Hole next week, the Lady Wolves are constantly looking to improve. Specific skills the team is working on include being a strong passing team and being aggressive when swinging at the ball and putting it down on the other side of the net, according to Demaret. While trying to get better, the team members are putting in the effort.

"I would say the strength of our team overall, freshman through varsity, is just how hard the girls are working every day and how much they are committed every day in practice to improving these fundamental skills so everybody can compete and win some volleyball games," Demaret said.

In addition to working hard to play better, the Lady Wolves work hard to be examples of positive leadership. This was recently appreciated during the Cokeville Volleyball Tournament, when Pauline Fackrell and her officiating crew at the tournament took notice of Mia Rosas and nominated her for the WHSAA Good Sportsmanship Award.

"I was so impressed with Mia every time she was on the floor," Fackrell said in her nomination. "She is a quiet leader with a great attitude. As the setter of the team she was a great example. She never complained about anything and just played as hard as she could. Every time her coach talked to her she was so responsive and happy to take her help. She played hard and encouraged her entire team. She was a great example every time she was on the court."

Darren Heslep, the principal at Green River High School, praised Rosas and the volleyball team for this recognition.

"This attitude can be contagious when acknowledged and cultivated," Heslep said.

While the coaches get to know the team members as they work with them every day, Demaret said it's especially nice when people outside the organization recognize the players as well. She was excited Rosas was recognized "for her silent leadership, her great attitude, and her good sportsmanship."