Toughness Tested

All season long, Stockton volleyball coach, Maddie Pontius, had been preaching to her players the importance of being mentally tough – not letting any outside influence affect your game. But Tuesday night in Polo, that was seriously tested by a strong Newark squad, and incredibly weak line judge.

"They've never played in front of this many people before," Pontius said before the match. "I've just been telling them to just go play, it's just another game."

But it wasn't just another game, and the nerves showed up. Newark claimed game one after a horrendous "out" call put Newark in control late,...