The Monte Vista Pirates will face off against the Middle Park Panthers at 4:45 p.m. on Friday.
On Thursday, Monte Vista didn't have quite enough to beat Sanford and fell 3-2. The Pirates have struggled against the Mustangs recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive lost matchup.
Monte Vista took a 2-1 lead headed into the fourth set, but sadly they lost the next two. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 19-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-13, 15-9.
Despite the defeat, Monte Vista saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Abbi Ortega had ten assists and seven digs.
Meanwhile, Middle Park came tearing into Saturday's contest with eight straight wins , and they left with even more momentum. They put the hurt on the Bluedevils with a sharp 3-0 win.
Middle Park found their leader in freshman Brooke Riddle-Robinson, who had six digs and four aces.
Middle Park was lethal from the service line and finished the match with 17 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least seven aces in 13 consecutive matchups.
Middle Park's victory bumped their record up to 14-5. As for Monte Vista, their loss dropped their record down to 11-6.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's match: Monte Vista has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 7.8 aces per game. However, it's not like Middle Park struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 11.3 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Monte Vista came up short against Middle Park in their previous meeting back in November of 2024, falling 2-0. Can the Pirates avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
