NVL Division Three North |
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Report written by Clare Francis |
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This weekend Riga ladies travelled to Telford minus their key middle hitter, Miriam Kay, who had a better offer in Borneo! However, the girls were joined by new sining Melisa Atay and verteran Jayne Warman who was returning from injury. In the first set it was neck and neck ebtween the teams but Riga managed to scrape a victory at 25:21, thanks to strong serving from Kirsten Schultz who impressively served the set out from 17:21 down! In the second set, despite some good pick ups from Sharon Alle and Netty Purkiss and some consistent setting from Clare Francis, the set didn't run as smoothly and a few unforced errors meant that the girls lost the set 25:22. Determined to make amends in the third set coach, Rodney Barbour, changed the line up bringing Melisa Atay on through the middle. Kristen Schultz showed her versatility coming on through 2 (not her usual position) to replace Annabel Cheatham but despite some strong blocking from middle player Sharon Allen, Telford took the set 25:23. Determined not to go down without a fight, good distribution from setter Virginia Rennie allowed Riga to dmoniate the game. At 15:12 Netty Purkiss suffered an ankle injury and Kristen Schultz came on thruogh 4 (third position of the day!). Strong serving from MelisaAtay saw the girls storm ahead to a crushing 25:15 victory. With the score neck and neck at 2 sets all, there was everything to play for. Riga got off to a strong start and changed ends 8:5 ahead. Good back court hitting from Annabel Cheatham and a good all round determined team performance saw Riga take the set and the match (3:2). MVP: Jayne Warman In the second game, Newcastle Staffs provided Riga with some very strong opposition, which included 2 members of the England Junior Squad. Riga soon found themselves behind. Elissa Braunston entered the game and put over several good angled shots forcing Staffs to scramble for the ball. Despite good picking up from Riga it was too little too late and Staffs took the first set 25:12. In the second set the girls fought hard and matched Staffs point for points. Some consistent passing from Netty Purkiss and Kristen Schultz allowed Clare Francis to distribute the ball and find Jayne Warman and Annabel Cheatham. However, Staffs had a good run of serves which Riga struggled to respond to. Netty's power hitting didn't quite enable Riga to catch up and Staffs took the set 25:18. In the first set good blocking from Annabel Cheatham and good passing from Sharon Allen saw Riga take the lead. Strong server Melisa Atay came on to increase pressure on Staffs. Riga's teamwork shone through but some inconsistencies in the passing unit a tthe end of the set enabled Staffs to clinch victory taking the set 25:19 and the game 3-0. MVP: Annabel Cheatham |
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