Red Demon volleyball works to rebound after rough week
By: Shelton Burch
Courtesy of Dodge Globe Staff Writer
The Dodge City Red Demons volleyball had a rough week last week, head coach Amy Fleener said. The team lost to Ulysses at Ulysses High School in a Dual last Monday, then went1-3 in a tournament there Saturday.
It wasn’t a week that went as well as Fleener said she would have hoped.
“We’re just struggling to make plays for the team,” Fleener said. “We’re still a little bit self-focused and making plays for ourselves and not going the extra step and making plays for the team.”
It’s been a long process this year for the team, which after last week is now 7-17 overall.
The two trips to Ulysses were the end of a three-event road trip for the Red Demons. Despite the record, Fleener said the team was still playing good volleyball, they just haven’t figured out how to provide for themselves what their home fans provide them. “The energy that we got playing at home was good for our girls and they fed off of that and they were able to go ahead and push through it and win a few matches in a row,” Fleener said. “We have not done a very good job on the road creating that energy for ourselves.”
As fun as it is to play at home and in front of fans cheering you on, Fleener said the team has to learn how to create that energy for themselves. To help, the coaches have started adding intensity to some of the drills the team does.
In the meantime, the Red Demons now begin the back half of their schedule. It won’t be easy, with State and Sub-State lurking at the end of October, just beyond Tri’s at Great Bend and Garden City, which are only interrupted by the Western Athletic Conference event at Liberal.
First though, the Red Demons return home, where they will host a Tri at the Dodge City High School Field House at 4 p.m. tonight.
