PALO CEDRO, CA (MPG) – After winning the Northern Section CIF Division VII championship for the past two seasons, the Maxwell Panthers fell short in their bid for a Division VI crown, with a loss to Fall River last Saturday morning at Foothill High School.
Seeded No. 1 in the bracket, the Panthers, despite leading early in all three sets, could not
maintain the level of consistency necessary to hold off the No. 2 Bulldogs and, as a result, fell in straight sets 17-25, 20-25, 19-25.
Norris in the NSCIF D6 championship game on Nov. 4.
It was not the performance that Maxwell had hoped for, as Coach Ashley Krug confirmed after the game saying, “I thought we were the better team, but we just made too many mistakes today.”
While the Panthers had some well-played moments, Fall River was always able to regain control by staying in system and tooling Maxwell’s block attempts.
Fatima Cano took some big swings and finished with team-high 15 kills, and Emma Hendrix
handed out 14 assists, but the offense never really found its rhythm.
The Panthers, who struggled in their hit coverage and sent too many free balls over the net to the Bulldogs, provided no other statistics.
Despite the loss, Maxwell’s season continued as it received the No. 2 seed in the 2023 CIF
NorCal Division VI Regional Tournament.
While the Panthers had a first-round bye, they will be in action at home on Nov. 11 when they host the winner between No. 3 Stone Ridge Christian (Merced) and No. 6 North Hills Christian (Vallejo).
Should Maxwell (26-4) prevail, the team would advance to the regional final on Nov. 14, which potentially could set up a rematch against No. 1 seeded Fall River.