ST. GEORGE — Hurricane, Desert Hills and Canyon View all started Region 9 play on a high note with unbeaten records this week, as Hurricane swept Pine View and beat Crimson Cliffs in four sets. Meanwhile, Desert Hills improved to 2-0 with a sweep of Cedar Thursday night, while Canyon View swept Dixie at home in their Region 9 opener on Thursday.

Thursday’s Games

Canyon View 3, Dixie 0

At Canyon View, the Lady Falcons opened their regular season with a sweep of the Dixie Lady Flyers.

Dixie started off by building an early 7-2 lead in the first set, but Canyon View came back to tie it 11-11. The score stayed close the rest of the way, but Canyon View prevailed 25-21. The Lady Falcons then had the upper hand for most of the second and third sets, capturing both by respective scores of 25-23 and 25-21.

“I’m so proud of the girls,” said Canyon View head coach Monica Jensen. “They did just like we practiced, and the younger players really stepped up. Our passes were great and our blocking was amazing.”

Canyon View improved to 1-0 in region play with the win, while Dixie, which also lost to Crimson Cliffs on Tuesday, dropped to 0-2.

— reported by Jeff Richards

Hurricane 3, Crimson Cliffs 1

Hurricane followed up their sweep of Pine View on Tuesday with a 3-1 victory over Crimson Cliffs on Thursday.

Hurricane won the first set 25-17, but Crimson Cliffs battled back, and took the second set 28-26. After that, it was all Hurricane, who won the third set 25-14, and the fourth set 25-19.

Chloe Bunker led the way for the Mustangs with 17 kills and 16 digs in a losing effort.

Desert Hills 3, Cedar 0

At Desert Hills, the Lady Thunder swept the Lady Reds, 25-15, 25-20 and 25-22 to capture the season-opening victory. The game was originally scheduled to be played at Cedar, but the teams switched locations due to Cedar’s gym having its floor resurfaced.

Snow Canyon 3, Pine View 0

At Snow Canyon, the Lady Warriors swept the Panthers 25-15, 25-15 and 25-19.

Tuesday’s Games

Hurricane 3, Pine View 0

Hurricane swept the Panthers, winning the first set 25-16, the second set 25-12 and the third set 25-13.

“We are a really young team, going against a pretty experienced team,” Pine View coach Jared Wilkinson said, adding that Hurricane is a team with every member playing year round. “We have no players who play year round.

“Our big focus this year is competing and never getting down. Keeping a sustainable level of energy throughout the game. That’s a whole lot easier to sustain that energy when we aren’t making unforced errors.” With this being Wilkinson’s first year at the helm, along with his wife and co-coach Kami Wilkinson, he said his goal is simple.

On the other side of things, Hurricane head coach Content Marshall said she wants defense to be the Tigers’ focus.

“We want to be known for our defense. We want to be that scrappy team. We want to make sure we get a hand on every ball.”

In terms of players who stood out, Marshall mentioned her middle Shanley Wadsworth (6 kills, 1 solo block, and 3 block assists) and libero Abbie Hermanson (4 digs).

“Shanley Wadsworth, our middle, stepped it up tonight. She was getting a hand on everything and trying to block everything. She was playing the net really well,” she said. “On the back row, Abbie (Hermanson) got a lot of digs, kept the ball alive and worked hard.”

For Pine View, Wilkinson brought up senior outside hitter, Ellie Wilson.

“She’s our most experienced player, and she leads by giving effort. She never gives up, and she’ll pass half the court if we ask her to. She didn’t really get going offensively, but as far as defensively, she was the one fighting for us and keeping us in the game.”

For Pine View, the young team has room to grow as their co-coaches are beginning to become more familiar with their team.

“This is our first year taking over the program, and so we’ve only had a limited time with these girls, but they’re getting better,” Wilkinson said. “They’re all developing, and now its just getting them to make the right play at the right time.”

Desert Hills 3, Snow Canyon 1

Desert Hills took on Snow Canyon and won in four sets.

The first set was a battle, but Desert Hills came out on top, and took the set by a score of 30-28. The Thunder would then take the second set 25-19.

Snow Canyon would not give up, as they won the third set 25-16 to avoid the sweep. Desert Hills would go on to win the fourth set 25-20, winning the game.

Crimson Cliffs 3, Dixie 1

Crimson Cliffs played an away game against Dixie, and lost in four sets by a score of 3-1.

Dixie started the game strong, winning the first set 25-19. Crimson Cliffs would go on to win the second and third set 25-22 and 25-21 respectively.

The fourth set would go down to the wire, but Crimson Cliffs would take the set 26-24, ultimately winning the game three sets to one.

Senior Chloe Bunker led the way for the Mustangs with 22 kills and 15 digs, both team highs.

Cedar City News reporter Jeff Richards contributed to this report.

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