Triton volleyball team hits rough patch

The Triton volleyball team had been making progress throughout the season and it seemed like they could have hit their stride at any moment. They’ve been competitive in most of their matches and one last bit of confidence could have pushed them over the top.
Unfortunately, most teams hit a rough patch over the course of the season. It’s possible that the Cobras have had that happen as they dropped four out of five matches last week.
The week started with a trip to Stewartville for a key HVL matchup. This one was a rout from the beginning as the Tigers pounced with a 25-9 score in the first game before following it up with a sweep thanks to 25-13 and 25-12 victories in the final two games. Ella Blaisdell (four kills, six digs, two blocks) and Greta Rhodes (six kills, eight assists, eight digs) had nice efforts for the Cobras, but it wasn’t enough to keep this one close.
The Cobras would head to Hayfield on Thursday and got a great turnout from the Triton fanbase. In a gym that was packed, Triton fed off the energy from the traveling crowd and surged ahead to 25-15 victory in the first game. The rest of the games would be thrillers as they went back and forth with the Vikings alternating wins and losses the rest of the way and falling in the fifth set 17-15.

While it was another loss, the Cobras showed progress. They were noticeably more animated throughout the course of the game and their energy helped them keep up with a team that has been surging up the HVL standings over the past couple of weeks. While Rhodes (19 kills, 35 assists, 11 digs) turned in a monster effort, she was joined by Tatyanna Bond (17 assists, ten digs, four aces) and Alexis Melder (15 kills, 13 digs, two aces) for a supporting cast that came up just short.
Despite the loss, Triton had momentum heading into the Jackson County Central Tournament, but the light at the end of the tunnel was a freight train coming their way. After picking up a victory over Murray County Central, the Cobras suffered three straight losses to Luverne, Pipestone and Litchfield.
A result like that is disheartening, but the Cobras have plenty of time to turn it around as they hit the halfway point of the year. They’ll host Goodhue on Tuesday night and travel to Rochester Lourdes on Thursday.