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Set 1: 16-25
The RIGA ladies got off to a slow start, struggling to work together as a team on court. Sheffield took advantage of this and began to pull ahead, and multiple serving errors from RIGA did not help this. Towards the end of the set RIGA began to find their form with some good attacks, however it was too little too late, and RIGA lost the set 16-25.
Set 2: 18-25
In the second set the ladies came back fighting. Some good hitting through four by Netty and Kristin meant that the score remained close. However, Sheffield soon began to take the lead once more, despite some good setting by both Ginny and Clare, and some string hitting by Annabel. A run of good serving by Miriam meant that Riga managed to catch up to Sheffield, and the score reached 18 all. Unfortunately, RIGA began to panic on court and could not put up an effective attack, losing the set 18-25.
Set 3: 14-25
In the third set, RIGA struggled to find their form once more. Despite some good hits to deep 1 by Sharon, Sheffield’s reception was strong, and the gap between the scores continued to increase. Some tactical substitutions by coach Rodney kept Sheffield on their toes, with some good hitting by Elissa. However, Sheffield proved to be too strong a team, and RIGA lost the set 14-25.
MVP: Miriam Kay
Set 1: 25-21
Although desperate for a win, Riga’s second match of the day got off to another slow start with neither teams attacking hard. At 5-9 down Riga eventually picked up their game and with a superb run of ten serves by Francis, Riga were leading the set 15-11. Better play from the Riga girls including great defensive play by Schultz kept them in the lead for the remainder of the set winning 25-21.
Set 2: 25-27
Following the win in the first set, Riga began the second with much more confidence and good hitting from Kay and Purkis held Riga in the lead for the first half of the set. Some strong serving from the opposition levelled the score which remained close for the rest of the set. Changes to the Riga team were made bringing on Braunston for outside mid-set and later captain Rennie for a variation in distribution of the ball. However a couple of passing errors at crucial moments towards the end of the set lost Riga the set 25-27.
Set 3: 18-25
Yet again Riga were off to a slow start with spirits low after the second set and they soon found themselves 4-11 down as a result of poor passing and a number of serving errors. Despite excellent blocking from Allen and some strong hitting from Schultz, other mistakes meant Riga were unable to chase Hawks’ lead and fell further behind to 10-19. Riga’s fight for the set came too late and Hawks took it 18-25.
Set 4: 19-25
The fourth set saw an improvement in Riga’s performance thanks to good setting by Rennie and then later Francis, giving the hitters more options. With strong attacking by Kay in the middle, Riga led the set 8-5. However following a time-out by Hawks, Riga lost a bit of concentration and yet more serving errors allowed Hawks to draw level. Although Hawks weren’t attacking particularly well, Riga slipped behind once more through a lack of communication within the team. A couple of good serving runs by Hawks secured them a victory, taking the set 19-25 and the game 1-3.
MVP: Miriam Kay |