Milexa Cardona is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism Student assigned to cover West Point High School for AZPreps365.com.

The West Point volleyball team did not disappoint its home crowd on Monday night as the Dragons won their third consecutive game in a four-set thriller against Chandler.

Last season Chandler swept West Point in straight sets, giving West Point the underdog status going into Monday’s match. 

The final score of the first set, 26-24, set the tone for the rest of the match. The following sets finished, 17-25, 25-20, 25-21. 

West Point senior outside hitter Melena'a Moala tallied 16 kills and senior setter Izzy Cabrera totaled 18 assists while adding five kills, making her a dual threat against the Wolves. 

A string of unforced errors had the Wolves down 1-6 at the start of set two until Chandler’s Prycelyss Purdie became a defensive threat at the net. 

“We adjusted our blocking.” Chandler  coach Tracey Rodarte said. "We camped out on their outside and started blocking her more.” 

Chandler’s adjustment to prioritize Moala on the outside led to a defensive stop, forcing the Dragons’ leading scorer to become less effective in the second set. 

Purdie had three consecutive block touches in one rally, putting the Wolves at only a two-point deficit, 7-5. 

Chandler’s defensive adjustment caused a shift in momentum, which then generated a string of errors by the Dragons offense, ending the set, 17- 25. 

West Point coach Monique Jones said the difference between set one and set two was her team’s serve-receive and communication. 

“When we’re on, we’re on,” Jones said, “ When we pass good, we get a good set and a good kill every time.”

The last two sets of the match had a common theme of making a comeback. In both sets, West Point struggled on serve-receive, allowing Chandler to go on two four-point runs.

Dragons star outside hitter Moala brought herself back to produce for her team when she noticed her opponent going on a run. 

“I just say get out of it, keep it up, and don’t get in your head.” Moala said, “I go back to my mental, and I go back to the basics.” 

Her mental pep talk proved to be productive as she scored three kills in a row putting her team in the lead as they rallied to close out the third set, 25-20. 

Chandler refused to lay down and continued to battle with the Dragons well into the fourth set. 

Both teams exchanged runs of two-to-three points throughout the fourth set until West Point took a 21-18 lead that ended with a 25-21 score.

The Dragons' offense was dominant at the end of set four as right-side hitter Nailah Lambeth and middle blocker Khloe Boston finished the set with back-to-back kills, 25-21.

West Point (3-2) is on the road this week to face Cibola (0-6) on Wednesday at 6 p.m. 

Chandler (0-5) will host Mesa on Wednesday at 6 p.m.