Volleyball Preview: Delta Panthers vs. Rifle Bears
Delta has gone 8-0 against Rifle recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Tuesday. The Delta Panthers will look to defend their home court against the Rifle Bears at 6:00 p.m. Considering both teams were shutout in their prior games, the pair is probably coming into this one with something to prove.
Delta is probably headed into the game with a chip on their shoulder considering Battle Mountain just ended the team's four-game winning streak on Friday. They lost 3-0 to the Huskies. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Panthers have suffered against the Huskies since September 26, 2014.
While Delta was kept off the board, it wasn't for a lack of trying: they cut into Battle Mountain's winning margin in every set. The match finished with set scores of 25-14, 25-15, 25-21.
Meanwhile, Rifle lost 3-0 to Steamboat Springs on Thursday.
Rifle was not held off the scoreboard, but that almost wasn't the case: they kept the second set very close. The match finished with set scores of 25-16, 26-24, 25-17.
Defeat or not, Rifle got some senior leadership from Valeria Olivas and Katelynn Rider. Olivas had 28 digs and three aces, while Rider had five digs and 24 assists. That's the most aces Olivas has posted since back in October of 2023.
Delta's loss dropped their record down to 4-6. As for Rifle, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-7.
Everything went Delta's way against Rifle in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, as Delta made off with a 3-0 win. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Rifle's Madelyn Berglund, who had 24 digs and two aces. Now that she won't be playing on Tuesday, will it be easier for Delta to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
