LAS VEGAS – The Jackson Volleyball team went 2-2 on Saturday to place 11th at the Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas, a tournament that features some of the best high school volleyball teams in the nation.
The Timberwolves won all three of their best-of-three set matches on Friday to move into the championship bracket on Saturday, but lost their first match of the day against Utah’s Pleasant Grove High School, dropping both sets 25-23. The Timberwolves had 26 digs, two blocks and 23 kills against Pleasant Grove.
A win would have given Jackson a chance at the championship, but the loss knocked the Timberwolves into the silver bracket where the best possible finish was ninth.
Timberwolves coach Ashley Allen was pleased with how her team performed against the high level of competition.
“The level of competition is very good here,” Allen said. “Some of the best teams in the country played here. Overall, I was very satisfied with how the team performed, yet I know there is still a lot of room to grow.
Allen said the team wanted to place in the the top eight in the gold division, but wasn’t too disappointed with 11th.
“Every team that finishes in the top 16 is just happy to be in that top 16,” Allen said. “We set a path of what we wanted to achieve with certain benchmarks (throughout the season) and we are pretty close to where we want to be.”
In Saturday’s second match, the Timberwolves beat Long Beach Poly from California by set scores of 26-24 and 25-21, finishing with 36 kills, four blocks and 26 digs.
They followed with a loss to Hawaii’s ‘Iolani by scores of 25-22, 24-26 and 25-18. Jackson had 38 kills and five aces in the match.
The loss set up a match with California’s Lakewood for 11th and 12 place that the Timberwolves won 25-20, 19-25 and 25-21.
The Timberwolves opened this season with a four-set victory over No. 3 Bellarmine Prep and open league play Thursday at Edmonds-Woodway.
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