The East Providence girls’ volleyball team is searching for their rhythm as they navigate the toughest Rhode Island competition among Division I.

While the team had a competitive first set against La Salle last Thursday on their home court, they ultimately dropped it 25-23. It seems as though the air came out of the tires then, as they dropped the next two sets without much resistance, 25-13, and 25-14.

The team followed up the performance with another 3-0 loss, this time to North Kingstown on Tuesday night.

The losses drop the team to 4-4 overall on the season, indicative of an inconsistent season thus far that has been due in part to injury, and in part due to some growing pains, according to coach, Alex Butler.

“We have a very inconsistent team right now. We will play well in spurts and then look really bad in others.  We recently lost Vivian Bernhardt (a senior, three-year starter) to injury right before the start of the Westerly match, so we have some moving parts right now. Even with that being said, we should be more consistent.”

East Providence, which has been a contender for the D-I title for multiple years thanks in part to some generational talent and the leadership of Butler, will need to find their balance soon, as the competition isn’t getting any easier in the coming weeks.

“Our passing and serve receive has been up and down and our service game for some returners is not where it needs to be,” Butler said. “Bottom line is if we want to compete at the top of the Division, we need to find some steady play and not hurt ourselves as much as we have.”