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Emily Farthing

Sophomore Maddie Clark serves the ball in the game against Blue Valley North on Oct. 12.

The competition and intensity between the Blue Valley Northwest varsity volleyball team and Blue Valley North heightened with every serve, hit, and spike, as the fourth set ended. As long time rivals, said head coach Molly Haggerty, the two teams have went back and forth between victories and losses in the past and were determined to take home the win. However, according to Junior Meiko Pearson and senior Katelyn Elstun, as the Huskies saw the spirit of the crowd, they realized they were home and couldn’t lose.

Both players believe this is exactly what drove the team to win the fifth and final set.

“What changed was the fact that we realized that we’re at home,” Pearson said. “We cannot lose in our home court and this is a team we’ve wanted to beat for so long.”

Elstun agreed, saying that after winning the first set, the defeat they faced in the next two sets pushed them toward victory in the end.

“We just needed to bring our energy back,” Elstun said. “So we brought back our energy and our confidence and it really helped us out.”

Head coach Molly Haggerty said in the past the team has struggled with following game plans and maintaining a strong team dynamic. Having played the Mustangs a couple times this season, Haggerty said, the girls were more determined than ever to finally take home the win. This and Blue Valley North’s skilled players and high ranking pushed them to create a solid finish and play without fear.

“We’ve had a couple close sets with them this year but never came close to finishing the match, so that was a really fun thing to see the girls grow and finish and win,” Haggerty said.

The players and coaches agree that this game displayed their true competence and their best abilities, and so far has been their peak from this season, said Pearson. With the victory, Pearson hopes to carry their intense momentum and success into the BVN tournament the following day, as well as maintain it into substate.

“We played with so much heart and energy,” Pearson said. “I’m just so proud of us.”