Titans split matches in Center showdown

Catch the action this Saturday in Mt. Olympus

The Titans traveled to Center for the first league tri-match to face the Cripple Creek Pioneers and host Center. The Pioneers appeared to have a young team with a new coach at the helm and the Titans jumped all over the young squad.
Crested Butte started the match off with some strong serving by sophomore Annie Duryea and senior Courtney Kopf. In the match, Annie scored 14 service points with three aces. Courtney scored 11 points with five aces. Sophomore Isabel Young led the Titans in kills with six in the match, followed by senior Leila Nichols and sophomore Emilya Ramsey with three, and the Titans won the opening match in straight sets 25-15, 25-19 and 25-8.
Next the Titans squared off against the Center Vikings. Over the years the Vikings and Titans have always battled with several of the matches going to five sets. Last fall the Vikings ended the Titan season with their first victory over the Titans, so the Crested Butte coaching staff was hoping that the Titans would be seeking a bit of revenge against the Vikings.
The Titans jumped on the Vikings midway through the first service rotation with senior Leila Nichols proving a strong seven service points with one ace followed by some additional service runs by Isabel Young and Brittany Barefield as the Titans took the first set 25-14.
The Titans started the match with some consistency but then it seemed as if the “whatever” attitude took over the Titans and the team started to unravel in the second set. Crested Butte struggled to communicate on the court and just could not find a way to consistently work together, as the Titans dropped the next two sets 19-25 and 20-25.
Now the pressure was on and coaches were desperate for one or more of the players to step out of the pack and provide some positive leadership. In the fourth set, the Titans played a little better to scratch out a 25-22 win, forcing a final fifth set to determine the match.
Similar to baseball, in volleyball teams try to avoid going “extra innings” while on the road as the advantage in the fifth set usually favors the home team. With their backs against the wall for this much-needed victory, the team that could take control would have the advantage in the shortened 15-point set. The Vikings out-worked the Titans to take a small but crucial early two-point lead. The Titans could never overcome the two-point advantage and finally dropped the final set of the match 13-15.
The split puts additional pressure on the Titans to perform with the historically strong league teams looming on the schedule. The goal for the Titans is to try to stay in the upper half of the league in order to get a better seating placement in Districts.
Adding more pressure, the Titans need to find some quick fixes to their problems because in the next eight days, the Titans will play five matches, which amounts to almost a third of their schedule. The Titans hit the road to Westcliffe on Friday, September 12 to battle an undefeated Custer County team. Saturday, the Titans host their home opener facing the South Park Burros and the Del Norte Tigers. Matches start at 11 a.m.
Homecoming week has the Titans hosting the Sanford Indians at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, September 16 and finishes with hosting Antonito at 11 a.m. on Saturday September 20.