The Ridgeview and Redmond volleyball programs are on divergent paths in 2018.

The Ravens, now 8-1 after a 25-13, 25-15, 25-9 win over their crosstown rival on Tuesday, are likely to contend for a state championship this season. The Panthers, meanwhile, are 0-9, and coach Aaron Mallory hopes this season lays the foundation for a bright future.

Parallels exist between these two programs. Both coaches came from smaller Central Oregon schools (Mallory from La Pine and Ridgeview’s Randi Viggiano from Culver), and both say they want to build a winning culture.

Viggiano — in her first season at the helm of Ridgeview — has a significant track record in the winning department. At Culver, her team won the 2A title in 2012 and played in two more state championship matches before her departure.

“I’m also the school counselor here, so it’s been busy,” she says. “But it’s been a nice transition. I love Ridgeview.”

Mallory and Viggiano coached against each other at their previous stops. Now, they are part of a rivalry in the city of Redmond. The mutual respect remains, Mallory says, and he looks to Viggiano’s work at Culver as a model for his program.

“(Viggiano) turned Culver into a powerhouse,” he says. “Now it’s my turn to see if I can do something like that. We’ll see.”

For now, the Panthers are learning valuable lessons, according to Mallory. Tuesday’s match appeared to showcase Redmond’s positive demeanor in the face of a currently winless season. A team with nine seniors on its roster is spending its time pushing forward rather than looking back.

“We want (the seniors) to exit the program feeling proud of what they helped build,” Mallory says. “I feel like we’ve got some good years coming up. They keep fighting, which I appreciate, and hopefully we get to a point where we can push ourselves over the top.”

Ridgeview is sitting near the top of the 5A pack, ranked No. 3 in the OSAA rankings as of Tuesday night. Viggiano is not satisfied. She says the Ravens can’t get complacent at this point in league play.

“We can’t peak early,” Viggiano says. “We’ve got to keep getting better and be disciplined. Our practices fine tune the little things so that every time we step on the court, we get a little bit better.”

Thundering spikes and uncanny anticipation were on display for Ridgeview Tuesday night, much of that coming from their stellar group of five seniors. Defensive specialist and libero Taylor Smith is one of them.

Smith says this Ravens team is “fun to be around” and pointed to a new coaching staff as a critical reason why. She notes the positive atmosphere around the team has a positive effect on Ridgeview’s level of play.

“It’s one of my favorite teams I’ve ever been on,” Smith says. “Our goal is to win state and I really believe we can. We’ve just got to keep pushing.”

— Reporter: 541-383-0307, rclarke@bendbulletin.com