Still looking for its first victory of the year, the Mountlake Terrace volleyball team ran up against a Glacier Peak squad that showed little mercy on the winless Hawks Monday.

The Grizzlies (2-0 in Wesco 3A, 4-0 overall) made quick work of Mountlake Terrace, sweeping the hosts 3-0 (25-16, 25-9, 25-20) at Mountlake Terrace High School.

Despite the loss, Hawk coach Rene Noeun was encouraged by what she saw out of her squad as they worked hard for each individual point. “They’re a young team, but they have that focus that we need,” she said, “Focusing on every point rather than the whole match.”

The Hawks (0-2, 0-4) struggled in the first two games against Glacier Peak, but held the lead at times during the third game before succumbing late. “They’re very, very green,” Noeun said, “but as you watch the third game (I think) ‘there’s something there.”

The potential of the young Hawks is not just evident to their coach, but to those who have seen the team play this month. “It’s nice to hear from the parents and other fans, even the scorekeepers, who say ‘we’ve been to all the home games and you guys keep getting better,’” Noeun added. “And that’s my goal.”

Noeun said most of the improvement in her Hawks has been with defense and passing. “If we don’t have a defense there’s no way to set up an offense,” she said. “So we are not converting on offense as much because we are focusing on our defense. And it’s improving exponentially. I’m really proud of them.”

The Hawks have been tested in their first four matches of the year against teams with a combined win-loss record of 13-3, a difficult early-season schedule that Noeun wouldn’t have any other way. “The team is going to see progress as long as they rise up against these tough teams,” she said. “It challenges them even though it might not be successful on the scoreboard. We should learn something every day, and that’s what they’re doing.”

While a winless start to a season may bring some teams down emotionally, Noeun said she is not seeing that in her squad. “They’re supporting each other, encouraging each other; there’s no negativity on this team whatsoever. And that’s all a coach can ask for.”

The next opportunity for the Hawks to break through with their first win of the season comes on Wednesday, Sept. 23, when they travel to face the 0-4 Stanwood Spartans at Stanwood High School. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

In other Mountlake Terrace action on Monday, Hawks Jeremy Ansdell and Adam Lorraine picked up individual victories in singles competition, but that’s all the boys tennis team could muster against a strong Shorewood T-Birds squad. Shorewood defeated Mountlake Terrace 5-2 in a Wesco 3A matchup played at Mountlake Terrace High School.

— By Doug Petrowski

Prep Volleyball: Glacier Peak at Mountlake Terrace

Glacier Peak 3, Mountlake Terrace 0 (25-16, 25-9, 25-20)

Records: Mountlake Terrace 0-2 in Wesco 3A, 0-4 overall; Glacier Peak 2-0, 4-0

Mountlake Terrace next match: vs, Stanwood, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 7 p.m. at Stanwood High School

Prep Boys Tennis: Shorewood at Mountlake Terrace

Shorewood 5, Mountlake Terrace 2

Singles: Jeremy Ansdell (MTHS) defeated Gunnar Thorstenson (Shorewood) 7-5 (7-5), 6-4; Adam Lorraine (MTHS) defeated Jack Bong (Shorewood) 6-3, 6-1; Kyle Berquist (Shorewood) defeated Jake Peters (MTHS) 6-3, 6-4; Hugh Gaevert (Shorewood) defeated Max Leidig (MTHS) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles: Joseph Jang / Peter Smith (Shorewood) defeated Drake Day / Alec Ung (MTHS) 6-0, 6-1; Cameron Harford / Jack Stensrud (Shorewood) defeated Bukhari Shekil / Owen Jones (MTHS) 6-3, 7-5; Simon Forinash / Andrew Counter (Shorewood) defeated Lucan Lemus / Graeme Carter (MTHS) 6-0, 6-1

Records: Mountlake Terrace 1-1 in Wesco 3A, 3-1 overall; Shorewood 3-1, 5-1

Mountlake Terrace next match: vs. Shorecrest, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 3:30 p.m. at Mountlake Terrace High School