DCEETA-A, DTRA-GR dominate intramural volleyball

DCEETA-A made easy work of E Co 302D during intramural volleyball Monday night, winning all three matches by scores of 25-13, 25-14 and 15-4. DTRA-GR rebounded after losing a match to INSCOM, winning two of three, 25-8, 25-27, 15-13.

E Co 302D seemed frustrated from the start of game one, giving up easy points on a lack of communication. The last straw came when DCEETA-A volleyed the ball to E Co's side and four players stood and watched it hit the ground between them.

"Come on, guys! Communicate! Talk to each other!" an E Co player demanded.

The pep talk worked, if only for a moment. DCEETA-A saw its five point lead disappear as E Co 302D pulled within two points, 13-11.

Even as DCEETA-A began to pull away again, the team made a costly error by serving into the net to give E Co its 12th point of the game. E Co capitalized with another point moments later.

But it was the last score of the match for E Co. DCEETA-A overpowered its opponent, outscoring them 14-2 by the game's end.

DCEETA-A came out firing in the second match, blanking E Co 302D at the start. E Co rallied when DCEETA-A tried a kill shot that landed out of bounds, then missed a return that tied the score at two.

E Co gave the ball right back on a service error, which opened the door for DCEETA-A to open an 11-3 lead. E Co called a timeout to regroup, but to no avail. DCEETA-A scored again immediately out of the break.

E Co struggled with another late game drought as DCEETA-A took home another win.

It seemed DCEETA-A was on its way to a shut-out in the third match. E Co 302D was down 7-0 until DCEETA-A served out of bounds. Still, DCEETA-A continued to dominate, allowing E Co only three more points for the remainder of the match.

In the second match of the night, INSCOM, competing with only five players, was little competition for the DTRA Gamma Rays. DTRA-GR dominated early with a 7-1 lead and allowed the shorthanded INSCOM team only seven more points in the match.

The second game opened a 4-0 INSCOM lead thanks to sloppy play by the DTRA Gamma Rays. The momentum shifted when INSCOM attempted a return that hung on the net, then fell to their side, giving the Rays a point.

DTRA-GR found itself in two-point deficits for much of the game, down 5-3 at one point and 7-5 at another. The trend ended when the Gamma Rays, down 8-7, scored on an ace, an unreturned serve and a second ace.

DTRA-GR ran with the lead, which stretched as high as 15-9. But miscues allowed INSCOM to close the gap again, including two shots that fell inbounds on the Gamma Rays' side of the court.

As the match wore on and the teams tied at 25, DTRA made the costly mistake of serving into the net. INSCOM never relinquished possession and took the win with two more points at the match's end.

The Gamma Rays found redemption in the final match. The lead switched side six times before DTRA-GR was able to win out by two.