Games of the Week: Week 4

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Week 3 has came and gone. The 2nd round of rankings is on the horizon and teams are beginning to settle in, find their grooves and make those pushes for their conference championships. Lets take a look at a few Games of the Week. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>8/31 3A #1 Cascia Hall @ 6A #8 Piedmont</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is a very interesting matchup. You have the best team from the smallest class in Oklahoma going against a state qualifier level team from the largest class. The TOC that basketball puts together gives us the same idea, lets see how small schools do against the big schools. Best of the best regardless of size going toe to toe. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach </strong>at Cascia Hall, Jenny Pearson. “The season so far has been off to a good start. We got some great momentum coming out of the Lincoln Tournament and hope to just keep improving.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I would like to see the girls come out with a strong start to the match. Having a strong serve and serve receive game so we can run our offense.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players:</strong> Both teams got a big time outside hitter with [player_tooltip player_id='477448' first='Sophie' last='Payne'] at Piedmont and [player_tooltip player_id='752767' first='Tessa' last='Bond'] for Cascia Hall. Mackenzie "The Maestro" Manning will be conducting the Wildcat offense that has seen a ton of success so far. [player_tooltip player_id='773612' first='Dominique' last='Crittle'] and [player_tooltip player_id='903892' first='London' last='Laubach'] are heavy load to try and slow down though.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>9/1 5A #6 Carl Albert @ 5A #3 El Reno</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We got a battle of top teams in class 5A here. El Reno has only played 2 teams inside the top 5 and Carl Albert has only played two teams in their own class. Both teams looking to gain something valuable from this matchup. It could help solidify El Reno into the top and show that the Claremore may not be a fluke. Meanwhile, Carl Albert is earching for some quality wins in their class to help voters really understand where they stand. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach</strong> at Carl Albert, Tabitha McCray. “Honestly, my girls this season have left me leaving every practice and game proud and like growth happens every time they touch the floor. They establish a new bar of where we need to be daily and I couldn't ask for more dedicated players. Could we be more consistent, of course but the over all day to day grind they show truly impresses me!&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Biggest focus is playing OUR game. Making sure they are playing to their level and keeping consistent from match to match. They will not have time to get down more than a few points or we would be giving El Reno a major advantage with their defense being explosive with their Libero.”&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach</strong> at El Reno, Jaden Kem. “We are excited for it. It's always fun playing competitive teams. So far, we are not exactly where I wanted us to be — but we still have lots of season left.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This last week was a roller coaster due to our practices being shut down because of a water leak. Hoping to refocus and get the job done.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='761783' first='Jaida' last='Richardson'] is a backrow stud for the Indians. As predicted, [player_tooltip player_id='913406' first='Londyn' last='Wilson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='904397' first='Tess' last='Proper'] are gaining a ton of experience and confidence with every week that goes by for CA. Keep an eye on [player_tooltip player_id='899732' first='Dennise' last='Shaw'] in the middle, she could sway how this match ends with her play at the net. [player_tooltip player_id='800092' first='Radley' last='Miller'] received all tournament for a reason at the Sapulpa Tournament. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>9/1 5A #7 Shawnee @ 5A #8 Duncan</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We got a spot at state type of matchup. Both teams are on that cusp of hosting a spot or having to travel for to a regional. This is the type of game that may be exactly the nail in the coffin for one of them. Will home court advantage play any part in the matchup?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach</strong> at Shawnee, Hunter Burnett. “Everyday we get progressively better. I have seen this team start to come alive as they gain experience on the court. We are a very young team with many high level players. Having only returned four varsity players from last year, every day we grow closer as a team and I think people are starting to realize that we are here to stay this year. I believe this team will do great things as the season continues to progress. We focus a lot on believing in each other which makes us stronger in every match we play.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we head into the Duncan match Tuesday, we are really focusing on staying consistent and putting the ball away. Smart plays win, and last time we played Duncan, we lost the art of being smart. We have put an emphasis on staying aggressive and staying smart, trying to let our volleyball IQ shine through our play while letting our athleticism go to work. Duncan has a team of athletes, so we are preparing to play our game and not conform to theirs.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players:</strong> Makiyah and [player_tooltip player_id='757042' first='Makynna' last='Skinner'], the sister duo from Duncan are the undeniable leaders of the team. Freshman standouts, [player_tooltip player_id='980844' first='Suzy' last='Howle'] and [player_tooltip player_id='944281' first='Parker' last='Lilley'] are gaining steam and impact the game on almost every rally. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As always, good luck to all the players and teams this week. Play hard and stay safe!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->