Volleyball Preview: Ryle Raiders vs. Highlands Bluebirds
The Ryle Raiders have the luxury of staying home for another game and will welcome the Highlands Bluebirds at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
Highlands is facing Ryle at the wrong time: Ryle suffered their first home loss of the season on Saturday and they're likely out for redemption. They lost 3-0 to the Eagles. The Raiders' defeat signaled the end of their three-game winning streak.
Ryle's loss came about despite a quality game from Ria Furuta, who had 14 digs. Furuta is on a roll when it comes to digs, as she's now had ten or more in the last seven games she's played dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Highlands entered their tilt with Boone County on Thursday with six consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with seven. They were the clear victor by a 3-0 margin over the Rebels.
The win didn't come easy: Boone County scored at least 16 points in every set. The match finished with set scores of 25-12, 25-6, 25-16.
Among those leading the charge was Ava Muzumdar, who had 11 digs and 13 assists.
Highlands couldn't miss and finished the game having scored on 44.4% of their attack attempts. The last time their hitting percentage was this high was in their last 13 contests.
Ryle's defeat ended an 11-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 19-4. As for Highlands, they are on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 14-4 record this season.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Tuesday's game: Ryle has really dialed in their serving game this season, having averaged 7.6 aces per game. However, it's not like Highlands struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.6. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Ryle took their victory against Highlands when the teams last played back in September of 2023 by a conclusive 3-0. Will Ryle repeat their success, or does Highlands have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
