Freedom’s volleyball team has gotten off to a great start this season, but the Patriots suffered their first setback last week when they fell in four games to Parkland.

It was the first time since their opening match with Bethlehem Catholic where the team was pushed to the brink and head coach Donna Roman hopes the lessons learned pay dividends down the road.

“I have a couple takeaways from our Parkland match,” said Roman. “First, we can compete with anyone. Parkland is easily one of the top teams in the state. We pushed them and competed with them throughout the match. Another takeaway is we have to focus on our stamina. We rely on our starters for most of our play, and the majority of our defense and offense. We need those players to make it through those four and five set matches.”

Freedom (8-1) recovered quickly after the Parkland loss to sweep Liberty last week and now have a week with two matches against Northampton (6-3) and Pocono Mountain East (8-3).

With two battles expected, Roman is hoping to keep the team focused heading into the second half of the season.

“The message this week is focus and rejuvenation,” she said. “We have a two-match week, coming off a four-match week and going into another four-match week. It is important we play our best point-by-point as we are closing out the first half of the season. Coming off a week where we played Parkland, and crosstown rival Liberty, it could be easy to lose the focus on our goals. It is important that we are focusing on teamwork, strong defense, and aggressive front row play.”

Liberty (4-4) is staying in the district postseason hunt, despite losing three out of their last four.

The Hurricanes have a chance to give themselves a cushion this week with three matches against Easton (4-6), Allen (2-8) and Pocono Mountain West (4-6). It’s an opportunity to gain some momentum heading into the stretch run to position themselves for a postseason berth.

Bethlehem Catholic (7-2) are winners of six straight heading into a week where they should extend that to eight games.

The Hawks face Whitehall (3-5) and East Stroudsburg South (0-6) this week in two matches they should win, as they continue to try and stay near the top of the District 11 3A power ratings.

They currently sit in third behind Pottsville (6-0) and Southern Lehigh (8-0).