MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks (9-6) defeated the Prosser Mustangs 3-1 at home Saturday. Head coach Krystal Trammell said they went into the game remembering to have fun on the court.  

“Let's get out there, continue to try different things on the court, but let's play our game. We enjoy playing Prosser, they're a really good team,” Trammell said.  

The Mavericks started strong by winning the first set 25-18 and taking a 1-0 match lead. In the second set, the Mavericks kept it close, but the Mustangs bounced back and won 25-22 to tie the game.  

Trammell said the team just pulled back too much in the second set, which allowed the Mustangs to capitalize. The Mavericks made serving errors that were too much to bounce back from in the second set. She also said the energy dialed down, which is not the norm for them.  

Trammell said Prosser goes at a different pace on the court than Moses Lake does. The Mavs focus on speed as part of their strategy, and their pace is more intense than Prosser’s measured pace, which made for slower-paced initial sets.  

The Mavericks increased their pace in the third set and won 25-19. With the match lead in their possession once again at 2-1, the Mavericks were poised to finish the game strong in the fourth set. However, the Mustangs were not out of it yet, finding themselves leading by three late. 

The Mavericks caught fire late behind a run of serves by Ava Garbe. She led the Mavericks on an eight-point scoring run to win the fourth set 25-21 and the game 3-1. Trammell said Garbes' serving was a key factor in their win on Saturday.  

“She had a fantastic day,” Trammell said. “She served the entire match. She had 24 attempts, she had three aces, and she only had one error. Her serves were a huge key in that win and that drive to finish it. She does fantastic.” 

Trammell said she has noticed a lot of growth in her players over the course of the season. Olivia Dehoog and Garbe in particular have shown a boost in confidence as of late, she said.  

“They are both very quiet, but when they step onto the court, you feel very comfortable and very confident with them. Here we are at the end of the season, from where they started to now is amazing,” she said.  

According to Trammell, that doesn’t stop with them. She pointed out other players like Addison Burns, Bella Minor and Lilliana Roylance who have also shown overall improvement as the season unfolded.  

Roylance stood out with 12 kills and 16 blocks at the net on Saturday. Trammell said that when she is playing like that, she is hard to contain on the court. Kardyn Martinez had 15 kills and 10 blocks against Prosser.  

Looking ahead, the Mavericks will continue trying to maintain their fast-paced play style, Trammell said. Playing fast is aimed at improving their defense and being more reactive to the ball when it’s in play. When the pace is slower, she said it makes the players more stagnant instead of anticipating and reading where the ball is going to be.  

“We've got the hitters. We really need to focus on our defense. The personnel that we have on defense is quick, and we're like, ‘If we can keep the ball in play, then we're going to do a lot better.’ One of our biggest things is you have to be the aggressor, and you have to play your game. You have to be quick. They love it, and they're a lot of fun to watch when they do,” Trammell said.  

Trammell said when they are playing at a faster pace, they can target their opponent’s weaknesses more based on their rotation at a given point in the game. The Mavericks head into their final two games of the regular season this week. On Oct. 28, they hit the road to play Eisenhower and wrap up the season at home for senior night Oct. 30 against Eastmont.  

The 4A district tournament starts next week, and Trammell knows the Mavericks will be involved, but their final games will determine if they are hosting the play-in game or not. She said if they get to host, it would make a huge difference for them.  

“We absolutely love that home court advantage, and going into senior night, I always tell the girls, 'This is not the last time you were going to play on this court. Do not ever let it be.’ So knowing and anticipating that they have another opportunity, hopefully that following Tuesday, it helps with their mindset,” Trammell said.  

BOX SCORE:   

PRSR: 18-25-19-21: 1
MAVS: 25-22-25-25: 3 

    The Mavericks bench cheers on their teammates during their match against Ephrata. The Tigers defeated Prosser in four sets on Saturday to earn their ninth win of the season.
  

    Kardyn Martinez (11) looks across the court as she steps into her serve. Martinez had 15 kills and 10 blocks against Prosser in their win on Saturday.
  

    Bella Minor (7) leaps into the air as she serves the ball across the net. Head Coach Krystal Trammell said her players are starting to peak at the right time as they prepare for the district tournament.