Madras took care of business Tuesday, Oct. 8, beating Gladstone is straight sets at the Buffalo Dome 3-0.
The win kept the Buffalos solidly in the hunt for the third place in the Tri-Valley Conference. With Crook County and The Dalles dominating the league, and Molalla and Gladstone struggling, it's likely Madras and Estacada will be battling for third and potentially the final league playoff spot.
Against Gladstone, now 0-5 in league, the Buffs got strong nights at the net by sophomore Ana Boyle and freshman Marlee Simmelink to win 25-15, 25-13, 25-17.
Boyle had 13 of the team's 32 kills on the night, according to coach Taytum Stevens. Along with good net play, Simmelink had six aces from the service line.
The Buffs also had a good night from Rikyha Sanchez with a 2.43% (out of 3) serve receive. Stevens said Sanchez didn't miss a single serve return.
"What stood out to me was that we stayed pretty consistent throughout all three sets and were able to get lots of playing time for everyone," said the first-year coach.
Madras dominated early in set one, going out to a 14-4 lead. Gladstone battled back to make it 14-8 before a Simmelink kill got the point and the service back to the Buffs.
Miriam Egovail got hot at the service stripe leading to a couple Buff points and Rebecca Francis' well-placed shot got point 25 for Madras and set one was in the bank.
Boyle's kills were key to set two. Simmelink followed one Boyle kill with an ace and Madras led 13-7. Boyle put-aways tallied points 14, 17, 19 and 22 for Madras as they led 22-13. Egovail served and Francis scored the set winner again for Madras.
Estacada didn't fold up and hit the bus early. They jumped out to a 9-5 lead in set three. Then Simmelink went to the service line and gained control of the match back for Madras. Three aces from the freshman and it was 9-9 and Gladstone called timeout.
Simmelink served another ace following the timeout. Gladstone battled back to make it 12-all before another Buff run made it 20-14. Breanna Lacey had a kill to put Madras up 23-17, and from there Madras closed it out.
Loss to The Dalles
The Dalles, fresh off their loss to rival Crook County in Prineville, took out their anger against the Buffs in The Dalles on Wednesday, Oct. 9, winning in straight sets 25-11, 25-12, 25-17.
The Dalles is atop the league standings at 6-1 with Crook County at 5-1, but the Cowgirls are ranked higher in the OSAA 4 power poll at No. 3. The Riverhawks are ranked sixth and the Cowgirls third. Estacada is in third place at 4-2, 9-6 overall, and ranked 17th. Madras is 3-4, 5-10 overall, and ranked 20th.
Molalla and Gladstone are both 0-5 in league, 2-10 and 1-11, respectively.
Madras is done playing The Dalles and only plays Crook County one more time. Estacada has to face both the Riverhawks and Cowgirls. If all goes to form, Madras may be just one game behind Estacada when they meet in Madras Oct. 22. Should Madras win and tie the Rangers, the tie-breaker would go to whichever team has the highest OSAA power ranking.
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