By james art 
PLAIN CITY — The Fremont High girls volleyball team returned to its usual home environment just in time for a rivalry game with Weber and continued its recent success.
Playing in a gym that was recently upgraded with new bleachers, the Silverwolves bounced back from a first-set loss to defeat the Warriors in four sets (19-25, 25-17, 25-15, 25-23) on Tuesday.
Fremont has now won three in a row and seven of its last eight.
“This is actually our first day back in the gym,” Silverwolves coach Analaine Mailoto said. “The stands closed at 1 today.”
Sadie Parish, in particular, proved tough to defend, racking up 16 kills for Fremont.
“She’s really learned to move the ball a lot more, so she has more tools in her toolbox,” Maiotto said. “She’s getting better at hitting different ranges.”
Olivia Surrage and Maya Jensen had eight and six kills, respectively, for the Silverwolves, while Atley Mitchell dished out 43 assists.
After struggling in the first set in which Weber (12-14, 3-5 Region 1) scored the last four points, Fremont (16-8, 4-4) used a 7-0 run to take a 9-4 lead in the second set and led all the way to tie the match.
In the third set, the Silverwolves used a 5-0 run to take control and take a 19-12 lead. A kill by Parrish, a block by Jensen and an ace by Jesse Broadbent highlighted the run. Fremont scored the final five points of the set.
The two teams went back and forth in the fourth set, which featured 10 ties and five lead changes. The Silverwolves looked in control after going on a 6-1 run to take a 22-19 lead, but the Warriors rallied with four straight points.
A Weber error on a Parish kill tied the set and a net violation gave Fremont the lead back. Mitchell then served an ace to end the match.
“I think they just had a slow start but we talk a lot about being motivated and moving on to the next one and they responded really well today so we want to see that. That’s the type of energy and attitude we want,” Maiotto said.
For the Silverwolves, the win avenged a five-set loss to the Warriors earlier in the season, a defeat Maiotto admitted “shook” her team. Fremont, which entered the previous matchup with Weber with a 7-1 record, has dropped five of its next seven since the loss.
A 5-1 tournament record at Green Canyon High School swung the momentum back in favor of the Silverwolves heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
“Our energy right now feels really strong and really powerful,” Maiotto said. “It’s not like this mid-season slump. We’re past that.”
Caitlin Field had six kills, four blocks, 13 digs and two aces for the Warriors, while Sophie Sparrow had six kills, four digs and three aces. Vivian Cruz and Maddie Zabriske each had nine attempts for Weber
“I think we just have to learn to be more resilient again and then we still have some things to work on in terms of our offense and becoming more consistent in rebounding and limiting our mistakes,” Warriors coach Rene Burch said.
Birch said what Weber did in the first set was a blueprint for victory.
“I think we were very heavy at the beginning and then our serve was really consistent … and we served aggressively, so when you have those three things, the match is going to be successful,” she said.
Contact Standard-Examiner editor Ryan Comer at [email protected].