The Reds volleyball team traveled to the Denver Coliseum to compete in the 3A State Championships, and although the team dominated all year, they were not able to walk away with the state title.
The tournament took place Nov. 14-16 in Denver. Eaton High School’s volleyball team entered the competition ranked as the number one seed, with a record of 25-3 in the regular season.
The Reds’ state journey began with facing the Sterling Tigers in the second round, and they swept them 3-0. Senior Evie Gavette reached 1,000 career digs during this game. The girls then faced Alamosa, who they also beat 3-0. In the semi-final game, EHS volleyball competed against a rival to advance to the state championship. The Platte Valley Broncos and Eaton Reds met three different times to advance to the championship, with a Bronco win of 3-2 at the first match-up. The second time the teams met across the net, the Reds ended with victory 3-0.
During the semi-final game, both teams came ready to battle. With a long-lived rivalry, both teams fought hard to walk into the tournament’s finale. The Platte Valley Broncos beat the Reds 3-1 and advanced to the championship game against The Village.
In the first set of the game against the Broncos, the Reds showed up and demonstrated their hard work, beating them 25-19. The Reds had everything working well for them, and had great connections between each player on the court. “Going into the second, third, and fourth set, we had just completely unraveled. We lost all aspects of the game,” said Callie Moos (25).
Moos is a senior player on the team, and always strives to be the biggest leader on and off the court. She added, “During the last sets of the game, the team lost discipline and the mental strength to step up and finish the game.”
In the last two seasons, Eaton Volleyball has lost in the semi-finals of the state tournament. The Reds hoped to finally end the streak this year, but the pressure of competing in the state competition is very intense. The team seemed to crumble under the pressure. This year, the Reds were favored to win the title, but also were aware of the “curse” from the prior seasons. The team let this mental block enter their heads, and they were unable to escape it to pull out the win.
In terms of chemistry on the court, the team always comes together to support each other and figure out the best way to improve their performance as a whole. Losing the game in the semi-finals was bittersweet, as all of their hard work together did not secure them a state banner. Gavette said, “If I could do one thing differently, I would have wanted to prepare the team more before the last game of our semi’s. I would have tried to hype them up, getting them more confident and prepared to play Platte Valley, yet not overlook them.”
Chloe Crider (26), who has one more year left on the team, is ready to step into the role of a leader next year. Being led by the six seniors on the team, she said, “One of the biggest things I learned this year is that in order to be a good leader, you can’t give up or have doubt show on your face when the team needs you the most during tough games.” Crider has been a player on the team since her freshman year, and has valued the support and encouragement from the teammates she’s played with.
Next year, she wants to be someone that the players look up to. Some advice from Crider for upcoming players on the varsity team during the 2025 season is, “No matter who doubts you, whether it’s coaches or other players, never give up on your dreams of playing. Always be the hardest worker during practice and games, and you will see great things come from it.”
Unfortunately, the Reds were not able to finish the season as champions, but the future remains bright for Reds volleyball.
