Rigby continues to roll with 3-0 win over ranked Pocatello

RIGBY – It might be hard to judge a team just three weeks into the season, but Rigby looks every bit as good as its 14-0 record suggests.

The Trojans downed Pocatello 3-0 Wednesday night to keep their record unblemished.

Pocatello (12-7) is ranked No. 5 in the coaches 5A state poll.

Rigby coach Aaron Adams was quick to point out that matches in September don’t always tell the full story of a team, but he’s liked what he’s seen so far.

The team is deep and athletic, he said.

How deep and how athletic?

Three players – Lily Stewart (Montana State), Acacia Taylor (Lewis & Clark), and Giada Bertagnolli (Air Force) – have committed to play in college.

Four more players – Brinley Larsen, Breleigh Youngstrom, Allie Dansie, and Carmen Taylor – all played on the Trojans’ basketball team that finished third at last year’s state championships.

“Even though we have these three volleyball-first girls, we have another four basketball-first girls who are just amazing athletes that know how to win,” Adams said. “It’s insane the depth we have in our program.”

Bertagnolli led the Trojans with 17 kills and hit .467 in Wednesday’s win. Larsen had 39 assists, and Stewart added 11 digs.

As for how the team looks in the middle of September, Adams said the true measuring point comes in a few weeks.

“It’s how you’re playing at Halloween,” he said. “We have this laundry list of things that we’re trying to implement on the team and we’re obsessed about that. How we’re blocking, what’s our defense look like?”

Bertagnolli said she knew early on that the team had potential to make a postseason run.

“Our confidence is building every day,” she said.