Volleyball Game Preview: Goldwater Bulldogs vs. Thunderbird Titans

The Goldwater Bulldogs will challenge the Thunderbird Titans at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday.

Goldwater is probably headed into the game with a chip on their shoulder considering Cactus Shadows just ended the team's four-game winning streak on Thursday. They took a 3-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Falcons.

The loss didn't mean the game wasn't competitive: Cactus Shadows scored at least 17 points in every set. The match finished with set scores of 25-19, 23-25, 25-17, 25-20.

Brandan Tran

Assists

04/03/25 @ Cactus Shadows	15
04/01/25 @ Greenway	50
03/29/25 vs Estrella Foothills	21
03/29/25 vs Odyssey Institute	21
03/28/25 vs Basha	32
+ 16 more games

Goldwater's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Brandan Tran, who had 15 assists and seven digs, and Joseph Sotelo Valdez, who had 12 digs and seven kills. Tran is on a roll when it comes to assists, as he's now posted 13 or more in each of the last 21 games he's played dating back to last season.

Meanwhile, Thunderbird had already won five in a row and they went ahead and made it six on Thursday. They came within a single set of losing the streak, but they secured a 3-2 W against the Demons. While the Titans didn't have the best season last year (they finished 2-13), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.

Thunderbird took Greenway into a fifth set where they got it done with a two-point win. The final score came out to 25-21, 25-19, 18-25, 20-25, 15-13.

Thunderbird's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-2. As for Goldwater, their loss dropped their record down to 7-5.

Goldwater couldn't quite get it done against Thunderbird in their previous matchup back in March of 2022 as they fell 3-1. Will the Bulldogs have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other volleyball content.