The Pahrump Valley High School junior varsity girls’ volleyball team continued its challenging preseason schedule Tuesday, Aug. 18, taking on 5A Liberty in a matchup that provided the young Trojans with another opportunity to gain valuable experience against a larger-school opponent.
Although Liberty ultimately took the match in two sets, 25-8 and 25-14, Pahrump showed improvement as the evening progressed, nearly doubling its scoring output in the second set while producing several strong individual plays on both offense and defense.
Freshman Emri Wulfenstein was a consistent presence for the Trojans throughout the match, contributing from the service line, at the net and defensively. Sophomore Ariana Apolinar also helped generate offense with her setting, while sophomore Raenalynn Domingo found opportunities to attack at the net and freshman Daisy Skougard contributed from the service line.
The opening set began competitively, with the teams separated by only a few points in the early going. After Liberty moved ahead 3-2, Wulfenstein delivered an ace to even the score at 3-3.
Liberty regained the advantage, but the Trojans remained within striking distance early in the set as a pair of Liberty serves sailed out of bounds. With Pahrump trailing 11-6, Wulfenstein provided one of the Trojans’ strongest offensive moments of the opening set, driving a hard spike from the far left side of the court to the floor for a point and cutting the deficit to 11-7.
As the set progressed, however, Liberty began to create separation. The Patriots put pressure on Pahrump’s serve receive and took advantage of several Trojan communication and rotation errors. A late run from the service line allowed Liberty to build its lead before closing out the first set, 25-8.
Rather than allowing the difficult finish to the opening set to carry over, Pahrump responded with a noticeably stronger start in the second.
The Trojans immediately went on the attack. With Pahrump already holding an early point, Apolinar put a set in position for Wulfenstein, who delivered a hard spike to give the Trojans a 2-0 advantage.
Liberty answered and eventually moved ahead 4-2, but Pahrump continued battling. Domingo attacked for another Trojan point to make it 4-3, and Wulfenstein followed with an ace to tie the set at 4-4.
The back-and-forth opening continued when a Liberty double hit gave Pahrump another point and tied the score at 5-5. On the next sequence, Wulfenstein came up with one of the Trojans’ strongest defensive plays of the match, digging a hard Liberty spike and keeping the rally alive. Liberty attempted another attack off the return but sent the ball into the net, putting Pahrump ahead 6-5.
The teams were tied again at 6-6 before a Liberty serve went out, allowing the Trojans to regain the lead at 7-6.
That stretch represented a significant improvement from the opening set, with Pahrump matching Liberty point for point through much of the early portion of the second and finding ways to extend rallies against the 5A opponent.
Liberty eventually moved back in front, but the Trojans continued working to create opportunities. One particularly determined defensive sequence saw Pahrump save a ball that had gotten dangerously close to the net and keep the play alive. The effort paid off when Liberty was called for a double hit, giving the Trojans another point. A Liberty attack into the net on the following sequence helped Pahrump close the gap to 13-10.
Skougard later stepped to the service line for the Trojans, with the ensuing rally ending when Liberty sent an attack too deep.
Wulfenstein remained aggressive offensively as Pahrump worked through the middle portion of the set. She continued challenging Liberty’s front row with swings at the net, and later put down another spike for a Trojan point. Liberty followed by sending an attack long, helping Pahrump reach 13 points.
The Patriots ultimately used their serving and attacking consistency to pull away down the stretch, closing the second set 25-14 to take the match.
Despite the final scores, the second set provided several encouraging signs for a young Pahrump JV roster. The Trojans held leads multiple times early in the set, battled Liberty to ties at 4-4, 5-5 and 6-6, and demonstrated an increased ability to handle the Patriots’ attacks and turn defensive plays into scoring opportunities.
The matchup also gave Pahrump’s younger players meaningful court time against 5A competition early in the season. With a JV roster made up largely of freshmen and sophomores, each opportunity to face a strong opponent offers the Trojans a chance to improve their communication, rotations, serve receive and offensive execution as they continue developing throughout the season.
