Oakesdale Nighthawks volleyball productive at Freeman Jamboree

OAKESDALE — The reigning back-to-back state volleyball champions for the 1B division returned to the court Thursday, Aug. 31, at the Freeman Jamboree in Rockford.

The Oakesdale Volleyball team took on all four teams that were at the Jamboree.

The varsity teams that attended the event were: Oakesdale, Freeman, West Valley and East Valley. The first game for the Nighthawks was against West Valley. The teams split one set each, with Oakesdale losing the first set 19-25, then took the second set 25-23.

The next game for Oakesdale was against East Valley, where the Nighthawks took both sets. The first was 25-12, and the second was 25-16.

The last Jamboree game for the Nighthawks was against host school Freeman.

Freeman, a very successful 2A team last season, gave the Nighthawks the best game of the Jamboree, and defeated Oakesdale in straight sets. Both sets were close, Freeman took the first 25-21, then took the second set 25-19.

“I felt it did help us to prepare for the season,” said Oakesdale head coach McKinzie Turner.

Turner also said that playing and scrimmaging against other teams before the official start of games is a great opportunity to see what level the team is at, and assess the players.

“I thought we just kept getting better every set, every point,” Turner said.

The first official game for the Nighthawks is set for Tuesday, Sept. 5, against the Liberty Lancers. The game is set for a 6 p.m. start at Liberty High School.