Losses have almost become a myth for Merino volleyball over the past couple of seasons, but during a tournament last week, Sterling brought the story to life with a 2-1 victory over the Rams.

The Tigers began the match on a high after staving off the Rams 25-21, but met with the expected pushback from the defending state champions. The Rams claimed the second set 25-23 and, naturally, made the Tigers work for each point in Sterling's 15-11 victory in the final set.

Merino junior Jaylyn Lynch took the lead at the net with 13 kills, but junior Kya Piel backed her up nicely with nine of her own. Piel took the onus of the defense upon herself, nabbing 16 digs to complement the 13 that came from senior Brooklyn Sutter and the 11 that Lynch contributed. Sutter then added 21 assists to her tally.

Both senior Ady Santomaso and junior Addison Wright scored on 12 kills for Sterling, while senior Kashley Sheets (15 digs) and senior Shayleigh Ulrich (10 digs) defended the back line. Ulrich pitched in another 27 assists.

The Rams followed the rare setback with three straight victories to push their season total to 17-1. They, rightfully, took over the No. 1 spot in the Selection & Seeding Index for Class 1A, while Sterling moved to No. 7 in 3A.

Sterling improved to 14-5 on the season after its tournament run, and suffered those losses to 3A No. 2 Eaton, 3A No. 1 Platte Valley, 3A No. 5 Resurrection Christian, 4A No. 4 University and 2A No. 5 Colorado Springs Christian.

The Tigers and Rams both have a couple of weeks to shore up any weak spots as they continue to dominate in their respective classifications through tough schedules. The various regional tournaments will take place during the second weekend of November.