On Wednesday, Sept. 14, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Eagles played the Western Wildcats. The Eagles were coming off a great win against South Plantation, winning the game 2-0.

In the first set, MSD took an early 3-1 lead. They played aggressive offense and pressured the Western defense. The early domination didn’t stop there as they pulled out to a 9-4 lead.

“We felt that we started the game out very good, and played very aggressively,” outside hitter Rya Shahbazi (8) said.

The Wildcats stormed back, creating a lead of 10-8. This lead was short-lived as MSD came back and led by four.

The Eagles started playing aggressively on the offensive side, directly resulting in a lead.

The burst of energy quickly depleted for the Eagles as Western quickly came back and did not look back.

Douglas tried to bring back their aggressive play as they tied the game at 18-18, but Western put their foot on the pedal, showing a combination of dominant offense and great defense. The Wildcats scored seven straight and won the set 25-17, and led 1-0 in the series.

“They took advantage of our defensive mistakes, and I think that is why we lost,” outside hitter Emma McGregor (12) said.

As the second set began, MSD was looking for revenge after their loss in the first set. Both teams went back and forth making the score 8-8. Western had a quick run and led 11-8. The lead quickly evaporated though, as MSD came back and tied the game once again.

Eventually, the Wildcats built their largest lead of the set and they led 18-14. As the set reached its end, both teams were neck and neck reaching for the win.

The Eagles were not able to pull out a win though, losing the set 25-22 and the game 2-0.

MSD is looking to bounce back against Ft. Lauderdale on Monday, Sept. 19.