Fatima’s C team played four matches Saturday at the Helias ninth-grade tournament, improving its level of play as the day progressed.

The Lady Comets opened against Osage and fell 25-20, 25-22.

“We were very flat, with very little energy, and unfortunately, it showed in the final scores,” said Coach Greg Wingrath. “If we had come out even close to what we’re capable of, we win both of those sets.”

Fatima responded with a 25-11, 25-16 victory over Smith-Cotton, although Wingrath still believed the Lady Comets had another level to reach.

“We were just slightly better, but still not what we’re capable of,” he noted.

That began to change against Rock Bridge.

“We finally played more to our potential, but they just played better,” Wingrath said. “They have some girls that can block pretty well, and we weren’t quite ready for that.”

With only eight players available, Wingrath acknowledged that preparing in practice for that type of blocking can be difficult, but viewed the matchup as valuable experience.

“The competition was good for us,” he added.

Fatima finished third in pool play and drew Helias in the first round of bracket play. Several Lady Comets had told Wingrath earlier in the day that they hoped for an opportunity to face the Crusaders.

When that opportunity arrived, Wingrath liked the response.

“They came out ready to play,” he said. “They competed, and we were in both sets and had our chances but weren’t able to pull one out.”

Despite the loss, Wingrath was encouraged by how Fatima finished the tournament.

“I was very pleased with the way they came out and were ready to play,” he said. “It’s too bad that we didn’t play that way earlier in the day.”

Wingrath said one of the group’s continuing challenges is learning to respond immediately when something goes wrong rather than allowing one mistake to lead to another.

“Once again, the challenge was very good for us,” he noted.