Muckers swat pesky Hornets away 3-0

The Tonopah Muckers went to Beatty for a battle against the rival Hornets on Friday. Both teams were even going into the game. Each had easily won their last three games.

The Tonopah team put a cork in the Hornets’ nest with the hard hitting of Ashley Gray with 10 kills, Julie Klapper with 6 kills and Sydney Maughn with 5 kills.

The Lady Muckers went on to beat the Hornets easily in three matches, 25-14, 25-15, and 25-21.

Muckers Coach Harvey Gonzalez said his team read about Beatty in the paper and wanted to come out and show them who was the better team.

“They did very well and were fired up,” Gonzalez said. “I told them before the game that Beatty should be solid. We know they took a match from Alamo in Pahrump. My team felt the Beatty Hornets were calling them out. I told them, ‘They don’t fear you and they don’t respect you.’”

The Muckers play Adelson, Word of Life, Indian Springs and then Pahranagat Valley on Nov. 1. Tonopah has a soft schedule leading up to Pahrump Valley and Coach Harvey Gonzalez has to keep the intensity level up.

“I let my girls know we don’t let up in these games and we keep the hammer down. We need to play our game and work on things. We will work on the defense, and the hitting. We need to work on the small things that will take us to the next level. I feel they showed maturity by taking Beaver Dam out quickly. We played our game and didn’t let up,” he said.

Gonzalez believes his team is slowly improving each match they play. He said the back line is a good example. He believes his defense keeps him in the games.

“What Maddy North is doing in the back is phenomenal. She is really taking control of the back. She is learning to spot hitters during the warm-ups and has really stepped it up,” Gonzalez said.

The Muckers played Beaver Dam on Saturday and easily won that game 3-0.