NEW PARIS — National Trail’s volleyball team turned in its best performance of the season, winning a crucial match over a county rival, after a rough week.

Trail snapped a five-match losing streak, which included four losses last week, with a straight set (25-19, 25-12, 25-15) win over visiting Tri-County North on Tuesday, Sept. 3.

With the win Trail improved to 2-7 overall and 1-2 in Western Ohio Athletic Conference.

North, which has now lost 55 straight matches, fell to 0-5 and 0-2 in the WOAC.

The Blazers focused on improving long rallies and winning points after multiple passes, which they achieved successfully, according to Trail coach Jackie Barnes.

“It was really probably the best game we’ve played all season, honestly,” Barnes said. “We had a rough week last week, including Saturday, we played two games. We practiced hard yesterday, on Labor Day, and we came out tonight, though, and we fixed those mistakes.”

Barnes noted her team also improved its hitting, finding holes and mixing up strategies. They demonstrated resilience by not letting North’s scoring affect their confidence.

Barnes said her team’s success was attributed to a collective effort, with contributions from everyone who played, highlighting their growing cohesion and balance.

“We won the long rallies, which was something that was really important,” Barnes said. “Something we worked on a lot yesterday was when you’re passing the ball back and forth 20 times, you’ve got to win that point, because you’ve worked so hard, you’ve got to win that point. So, we did a really nice job with that. I felt like we hit spots well when we tried to find the holes and mixed up our hitting. It was the game we needed to start the week off.”

Evie Hoffman had 10 kills and 16 digs. Miranda Ott added 10 kills. Kaitlyn Schweizer contributed seven kills, 13 digs and three blocks, while Jaelyn Remaklus had 14 digs.

For North’s first-year coach Erika Bradshaw she saw her team making progress despite the loss.

“When the last two seasons, you’ve been 0 and 22 and you’re their third varsity coach for the seniors, we’re still in this trusting area,” Bradshaw said. “And we’re doing a defense that not a lot of people have come across. Even though we didn’t win the game tonight, I still feel like we’re taking small victories. We’re getting where we need to be defensively. We’re taking smart shots offensively. We still have a ton of work to do, but we can only go up from here.”

Bradshaw said one aspect she’s trying to emphasize is celebrating the small victories.

“We are celebrating every victory that we have, whether it is small or big,” she said. “So if the opponent hits out of bounds, that’s our point. Take the small victories and run with it. So, I think that as long as we keep on executing that and keep on just vocalizing those small wins for us, I think we’re going to be on the right track.”

Keeping a positive attitude has been another point of emphasis for Bradshaw.

“That’s one thing that I’m always pushing for them, that you play better when you’re smiling. We can make errors after errors, but as long as we keep on smiling and we stay positive, then we’re fine. So, I think that’s our biggest battle right now, is really trying to not let the mold spread,” Bradshaw said.

“For me, my first year at North, coming to a team that has been 0 and 22 for the last two years we can only go up from here, so we’re trying really hard to pull out a win this season.”

Kiley Adkins had pair of kills to the lead the Panthers, while Taylor Cole had three assists and two service aces. Paityn Davidson had 27 digs.

Trail was scheduled to play Bradford on Thursday, Sept. 5 and will play at Mississinawa Valley on Tuesday, Sept. 10.

North was scheduled to play Tri-Village on Thursday, Sept. 5 and will travel to Emmanuel Christian Academy on Saturday, Sept. 7. The Panthers will travel to rival Twin Valley South on Tuesday, Sept. 10.

Reach Eddie Mowen Jr. at 937-683-4061 and follow on X @emowenjr.