The Lady Falcons dropped their first match last week but bounced back to pull off a hard-fought victory two days later.

The Fountain Hills High School volleyball team’s first match was on Sept. 24 against American Leadership Academy, where the team dropped a close match in three sets; 25-18, 25-21, 25-20.

Two days later on Sept. 26, FHHS volleyball hosted Payson for a match that went five sets. The Lady Falcons won, 3-2.

Fountain Hills Volleyball only had one away match this week, which was held Oct. 1 at Canyon View.

ALA

Head coach Tia Kannapel called the Sept. 24 match “a very tough loss, as a coach.”

The Lady Falcons never jump-started their game, according to Kannapel, and the loss is particularly tough as it will have an effect on the team’s overall standing.

The silver lining to Kannapel is that it taught the team a lesson that they need to keep in mind going forward.

“The game turned out to be a good reminder that we have to come into every game with the proper mindset and be geared to win every set,” Kannapel said.

Payson

It seems that the Lady Falcons took that lesson into their next game against Payson.

“The girls mentally and physically pushed and never quit on any of the points,” Kannapel said. “They kept playing aggressive volleyball no matter the score and it was great to watch them play with that level of confidence.”

Fountain Hills ended up winning the match in the fifth set, 15-13

“This was a huge win for varsity and a much-needed one for the team,” Kannapel said.