ELLSWORTH — Prescott volleyball is hitting its stride at the right time, as the Cardinals have won five of their last six matches, including a 3-1 win on the road against Ellsworth on Oct. 8.

The Cardinals, who were struggling to find wins a few weeks ago, have now vaulted themselves all the way to the third spot in the Middle Border Conference.

The lone set loss for Prescott came in set three, and Prescott Head Coach Geoffrey Snyder said the team was a bit overconfident, locking back in for the fourth. Prescott was aced seven times in the third set, and Snyder said they are not going to win many sets where that is the case.

“We dipped down in the third set there. We kind of got a little too relaxed,” Snyder said. “Then we started to have a little panic set in.”

“We talked about the mental side of the game and how to go out there and play our roles, and we pulled it together,” Snyder said.

The mental phase of the game is one the team is laser-focused on, and it is something Snyder has seen major improvement in as the season has gone on.

“We have all the physical pieces, but understanding what we should be doing in different situations and working on how to play as a team, and kind of meshing in that way has been a huge part of this last half of the season,” Snyder said.

Snyder said each of the positions are playing their part, and that is why the team is stringing wins together. To keep it going, Snyder wants to see the team navigate the many situations they might encounter. in the postseason

“Just continue with this momentum of competing mentally,” Snyder said. “What do we do when we’re down? What do we do when it’s a close game? What do we do when the other team has set point or match point?”

Prescott’s season turned around in a hurry, with the Cardinals struggling to find wins prior to conference play. Starting 1-9, Prescott has completely flipped the script, sitting just a match off the conference leaders.

A matchup that showcased the turnaround was the Sept. 26 3-2 win over Baldwin-Woodville. Prescott lost to BW 2-1 Sept. 3, but the way they are playing of late has been completely different.

The Panthers picked up a bounce-back 3-0 win over Amery on Thursday, improving to 2-4 in conference with a conference matchup against 1-5 Somerset remaining.

Regionals begin Oct. 22 and the State Tournament runs from Nov. 7-9.