Warriors rebound with a 3-1 triumph over Wilmington
JULIA BROWN, a junior (middle), had 12 kills for the Warriors in their 3-1 triumph over Wilmington last night at the Charbonneau Field House. Teammates Marissa Patti (#3) and Julia Purcell (#1) back her up on the play.
Published in the September 20, 2016 edition.
By DAN BYRNE
WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield Memorial High School girls’ volleyball team hosted Wilmington at the Charbonneau Field House on Monday. Head Coach Nicole Trudeau’s side had dropped its previous two matches last week against Stoneham and Arlington three sets to one.
But last night was a different story as they posted a 3-1 triumph over Wilmington to even its overall record at 3-3 and 2-3 in the Middlesex League Freedom division.
“We made a million mental errors,” the coach said of the game against Arlington. “Then we played Stoneham here and it wasn’t our best day.
“It was more mental errors and avoidable mistakes (in the Stoneham game) but there were some good things. Nicole Catino stepped in to play defense and was playing awesome,” the coach said., “We were just timid in both of those matches, trying to not make mistakes rather than play our game.”
The Warriors got back to .500 as they turned the tables on the Wildcats and came out on top three sets to one.
It started out slowly for the Warriors as they dropped the first set 25-16, only recording eight kills.
“We weren’t really doing anything wrong,” the coach said of the way the first set went. “We just missed a lot of serves in the first set and you can’t miss serves. So we decided we had to clean it up.”
In the second set things started to fall their way, as they started to swing with some more confidence. Senior outside Emma Butler and middle Abbie Badgett had four kills apiece in set number two, while junior middle Julia Brown had five kills as the Warriors evened the game at one set each, winning the second set 25-20.
“Emma was on fire again tonight and both Abbie and Julia Brown were making smart plays,” the coach said.
In game three, the Warriors took a controlling two sets to one lead with a momentous 25-22 win. The lead changed hands over and over as the two teams traded points throughout the set. Emma Butler had seven of her team high 18 kills in the third set, as Wakefield’s passing was on point.
“Marissa Patti stepped in again for us, she started coming in on defense in the Stoneham game and she is playing lights out defense,” said Trudeau. “Tonight she struggled with some things but she is very solid. She might not be as flashy as some other players but she is very reliable and it is so nice to have that depth in the team that we can make a change like that and give somebody a break and get back on track. She is doing amazing.”
Coach Trudeau credits the specific skill work the Warriors have been focusing on in practice to her team’s overall success in the game against Wilmington. She had noticed throughout the losses last week that the Warriors needed to work on their focus and attention to detail when it comes to the momentum shifts of a volleyball game.
“It was a slow practice,” she said, “But it was a deliberate practice. We focused on making better choices and holding ourselves to higher expectations.”
The team worked on the fine details on what it takes to win a match and that paid off on Monday.
“I think tonight we did a great job picking away at their weaknesses and accentuating their weaknesses using our positives,” the coach said. “I think we became a smarter team tonight and learned the value of smart play rather than power.
I couldn’t ask for more from this team,” Trudeau added. “We really worked on how we respond to good plays, as well as adversity and we did everything on our checklist.”
“They’re a young team in terms of their game experience, but they played great tonight. Once they get on a roll they have it,” the coach summarized. “It’s about belief in yourself.”
The Warriors were prepared to handle a difficult, trying match and they persevered through Wilmington’s challenge.
Wakefield sealed the deal with a 25-21 set four win, giving the Warriors their second league win of the year.
It was important for the team to get a good result with Melrose coming to play on Thursday. The Red Raiders will no doubt pose a formidable test, as Coach Trudeau and the Warriors look to defend their home court again.
To wrap it up Coach Trudeau said, “If we play steady we can surprise anyone in this league, we just have to play our game. We don’t want to reach, we want to respond.”
Wakefield hosts Melrose on Thursday night at 5:15 p.m. at the Charbonneau Field House.
