ST. GEORGE — The first round on the Class 4A state tournament was played at home sites on Friday, with Dixie and Hurricane having home games, while Pine View and Canyon View were on the road. Dixie beat Pine View, Hurricane beat Ben Lomond and Canyon View lost to Bear River.
Friday’s games
No. 15 Dixie 3, No. 18 Pine View 1
Dixie beat fellow Region 9 team Pine View in the first round of the Class 4A tournament at Dixie high school, 25-13, 13-25, 25-14 and 25-11.
Dixie came out of the gate strong and controlled the first set, but Pine View bounced back. They won the second set and recaptured some of the momentum from the Flyers.
25-11 Dixie takes the fourth set and the match. Dixie moves on to the second round of the Class 4A tournament. pic.twitter.com/VFI4O4nYQC
— St. George News Sports (@STGnewsSports) October 26, 2019
“We started off pretty strong but I think we lost a little bit of focus in the second game, thinking maybe they’d roll over, which is never going to happen,” Flyer head coach Stacey Leavitt said.
Dixie would take the next two sets to get the victory and advance on to the second round of the 4A tournament. Leavitt is looking forward to the environment of the state tournament and thinks her team will play better as a result.
“That’s the one thing I feel like with Dixie, we get up there and we’re always ready to play,” Leavitt said. “We like that intensity, so I feel like we’ll feed off that too. Just getting up there, that’s when the fun comes. Now it’s whoever wins, not this RPI system anymore, it’s just get the job done.”
One mainstay for Dixie in the latter half of the season has been Halle Anderson. She is not only a great passer, but it is easy to see that she always has a smile on her face, even when a mistake is made. She is consistently thinking about the next play. Leavitt said that has always been Anderson’s persona. She is a competitor and does not dwell on her own, or the team’s, mistakes.
“I love volleyball, I love my team so it makes it so much fun,” Anderson said. “Getting them hyped up is my job.”
Pine View had just played Dixie on Tuesday, and it did not go as planned for the Panthers. They came into this game prepared.
“I wish the scoreboard represented better how well we played,” coach Jared Wilkinson said. “Dixie played a great defensive match. We were putting in really tough balls to them and they were digging them and making it look easy, transitioning out of it. When their three main seniors are on it, they are a very difficult team to beat, and they took care of business when it mattered most today.”
For Pine View, this marked the end of their season, but Wilkinson does not think their record shows the amount of growth their team had this year.
“The season is what it is,” Wilkinson said. “These kids, they had to learn how to play volleyball this year, and that growth just isn’t represented in our wins and losses. I am tremendously impressed with these girls and the work that they put in this year. I couldn’t have asked for a better group to start this rebuilding process with.”
No. 12 Hurricane 3, No. 21 Ben Lomond 0
Hurricane swept Ben Lomond at home to advance on in the state tournament, 25-18, 25-9 and 25-15.
Hurricane sweeps Ben lomond to advance to 4A tournament next week in Orem pic.twitter.com/JG2POKPtJS
— St. George News Sports (@STGnewsSports) October 26, 2019
The Tiger came out with a lot of energy, and head coach Content Marshall noticed.
“We came out strong,” Marshall said. “I felt like we prepared for this moment. We’ve got some great teams in this region.”
The win earns the Lady Tigers a ticket to next week’s 4A state tournament at Utah Valley University in Orem. Hurricane’s first opponent at the state tournament will be Stansbury, the No. 5 overall seed. The game is scheduled for 4 p.m. Tuesday, with additional rounds taking place later Tuesday and Wednesday.
“We played them at the beginning of the season, actually,” Marshall said of Ben Lomond. “We played three games with them at a tournament and they were back and forth the whole way. So I feel like they’re going to be a very competitive team, but I think we will be able to match up well with them.”
No. 16 Bear River 3, No. 17 Canyon View 1
Canyon View traveled to Ben Lomond for their first-round game and was defeated in four sets, 22-25, 25-19, 25-19 and 25-16. The Falcons ended the year with an overall record of 7-23.
Second and third round – Oct. 29 – Games played at UCCU Center at Utah Valley University
- No. 9 Desert Hills vs No. 8 Uintah – 4 p.m. on Court 1
- No.5 Stansbury vs No.12 Hurricane – 4 p.m. on Court 4
- No. 2 Mountain Crest vs No. 15 Dixie – 5:30 p.m. on Court 2
- No. 7 Snow Canyon vs No. 10 Cedar – 5:30 p.m. on Court 1
- No. 6 Green Canyon vs No. 11 Crimson Cliffs – 5:30 p.m. on Court 4
Third round games will be played same day. All other games are TBD.
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