After dropping three games last week, the Whitehall girls volleyball team rebounded with two consecutive wins to get them back on track.

They defeated Saucon Valley High School last Saturday, and then followed that with a win over Northampton Area High School on Monday to raise their record to 4-3.

The swift turnaround now has them in fourth place in Division C of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference.

Their latest win was a sweep of the Konkrete Kids. The Zephs won that match, 25-16, 25-14 and 25-19. In the win, Tanesia Rehrig had 20 digs, while Becca Lutterschmidt had 9 kills and Kristin Spengler made her presence felt with 17 assists.

Then Zephs also swept the Panthers on Saturday, ending their skid. Last week they lost consecutive EPC matches to Easton, Allentown Central Catholic and Nazareth High Schools, getting swept in each match.

Middle hitter Cristal Fernandez said that in their game against the Blue Eagles they began to show some signs of righting the ship. She said they began the game well, reeling off a couple of points, but ran into a buzz saw with the Eagles' service game.

The Blue Eagles tallied 18 aces in the game, led by Kristen Ruggerio's eight.

That helped sparked the Blue Eagles double-digit margin of victory in the first two games.

"It's not what we would like to see," said Fernandez.

However, Fernandez said they battled extremely hard in that third game, determined to make sure that they gave the Blue Eagles all they could handle. Fernandez said they fought back to take the lead, but they were victimized by a service run again.

"We gave it everything they got," she said. "All in all, we gave it a fight."

She said they were able to bounce back from those earlier games and play much better as a team in that third game. It was an attitude they carried.

"Last game, they weren't going to get past us without walking all over us," said Fernandez. "And that did not happen."

Fernandez said experiencing that rough patch after their strong start led to some rotation adjustments. She said it paid off in that third game, something they'll continue to work on in practice. She also said just playing sound, fundamental volleyball can lead to success.

"We have to go with the basics," she said. "I think we were trying too hard to do big things, and when we made a mistake, it just got in our heads."

Fernandez said removing those repetitive mistakes, as well as adhering to what the coaches taught them to do, will also be a big benefit moving forward.

She predicted that Saucon wouldn't be ready for their heat.

She was right.

In the game against the Blue Eagles, Fernandez registered four blocks, as well as a number of kills. Fernandez, who gets visibly pumped after stuffing an opponent, can change the momentum of a game by one of her blocks.

As a 5'5" middle hitter, Fernandez said that positioning is the key to getting those blocks. She said that the coaches have also helped her to maximize her shot-blocking ability.

"They taught me to stick with technique, and since I'm a short middle, I have to focus on being on top of the setter and trying to put my hands up there," said Fernandez "Even if I don't get a solid block, I can help out my defense anyway."