Austin Hepola is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Desert Vista for AZPreps365.com.

The Desert Vista Thunder couldn't capture momentum in their Thursday match against the Gilbert Tigers as they were swept in three straight sets (25-12, 25-15, 25-12). 

As the match began, the electricity was felt in the air.

The Gilbert High gymnasium was packed as fans were excited to see No. 10 Thunder go up against No. 4 Tigers (rankings are in the 6A conference by AZPreps365). 

The Thunder have now suffered consecutive losses while the Tigers won their eighth game in which they swept the opponent, 3-0.

“This whole week we’ve really just struggled with our serve and pass game,” Thunder head coach Audra Slemmer said. “And that was super evident tonigh. Hopefully going into the weekend, or next time we meet Gilbert, our serve and pass aspect of our game will improve.”

Slemmer is in the midst of her second season as head coach at Desert Vista. Despite suffering a loss, she and the rest of her staff kept the team in a positive mood throughout the entire game.

“My coaching philosophy is to coach with positive feedback and encouragement,” Slemmer said. “As a player that’s what I always liked, so that’s what myself and the coaching staff put into practice, and I think because we put that into every game and practice the girls have adopted that too. It just helps them stay composed and willing to fight for each point”

That philosophy has been very effective in keeping the team in great spirits no matter what the outcome is.

With that being said, winning is still the ultimate goal for the Thunder.

“I told the team that tonight, and our loss on Tuesday, is either going to dictate this weekend in a positive way or a negative way,” Slemmer said. “The second half of our season starts in Octobe. If I know the team as well as I do, this will fire them up and we’ll be ready to go."

Although this wasn’t the outcome the Thunder wanted, there were still a few positive glimpses that can be taken away for the matches.

The team played hard. It may not reflect in the score, but the Thunder players were flying all over the court.

Junior libero Jenna Werbelow still believes in her team.

“ I just think we have some areas we need to get better in,” she said. “But overall, we didn’t give up and kept fighting. Our coaches bring all this energy, they just keep us positive and not bring us down.” 

Senior setter Gabbi Leblanc was creating great opportunities for her teammates, but the Tigers were relentless on the attack and were just too much for the Thunder.

“Honestly, I think it’s grit really,” Leblanc said. “It’s not that drive consistently the whole time and it’s really hard to hold on to, it’s just something we have to keep working on.”

In defeat, Desert Vista remained positive, which is something that not many other programs can say after a loss. It's a testament to the mentality of the coaches and players for the Thunder. 

Desert Vista is now set to play in the Nike Tournament of Champions this weekend as they open up against Sunnyslope (5-4) Friday.