"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way–in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only." ~ A Tale of Two Cities
On the second day of a back-to-back, Melrose notched its first win, on the road, over a solid Woburn team, 25-23, 25-18, 25-17.
Success blends technique (skill), tactics (strategy), physicality, and psychological fortitude. First, Melrose played better, with better passing, better blocking, and better hitting. Second, Coach Scott Celli made lineup adjustments moving Chloe Gentile outside and Anna Shoemaker to the middle. Melrose played better and generated more outside hitting and neutralized a potential Woburn blocking edge in the middle.
Individually, Gia Vlajkovic had a strong game both passing and hitting, Sadie Jaggers, paired with Manon Marchais, blocked well, and Chloe's offense got unlocked outside.
Just as yesterday's loss didn't define a season, one win doesn't either. But better play coupled with emerging confidence gives Melrose something to build upon. Strong teams rely on top players producing at a high level and that certainly happened today at TannerLand.
Figure from Dr. Fergus Connolly, Game Changer, The Art of Sports Science.
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