Volleyball Recap: Northwest Christian's Run of Eight Straight Wins Now Over

Crusaders

Previous 5 Games

10/23/25 @ Payson	2-3
10/21/25 @ Bourgade Catholic	3-0
10/16/25 vs Gilbert Christian	3-0
10/15/25 @ ALA - Ironwood	3-0
10/14/25 vs Benjamin Franklin	3-0

After flying high against Bourgade Catholic on Tuesday, Northwest Christian came back down to earth. The Crusaders fell just short of the Payson Longhorns by a score of 3-2 on Thursday. The Crusaders' loss signaled the end of their eight-game winning streak.

Northwest Christian actually scored more points across those five sets (102-96), but sadly they still had to settle for second. The match finished with set scores of 15-25, 25-21, 25-19, 16-25, 15-12.

Cadence Roberts paced Northwest Christian's offense, picking up 19 kills. Roberts got some help from Tatum Naber and her 54 assists. Finally, Lilly Bliss kept Northwest Christian's defense grounded, leading the team with four blocks.

Northwest Christian's defeat was their first in the region, dropping their region record down to 9-1 and their overall record down to 22-6. As for Payson, they are on a roll lately: they've won 16 of their last 20 matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 27-7 record this season.

We've got plenty of inter-region action coming up soon. Northwest Christian is set to take on their familiar foe San Tan Foothills at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Payson will square off against rival Gilbert Christian at 6:00 p.m. on Monday.