By Ray Hamill — The Arcata girls would not be denied.

On Thursday night, the Tigers took a big step towards their first Big 5 title in volleyball in three years with a straight-sets win over the Del Norte Warriors in front of an enthusiastic home crowd at Arcata High.

The Arcata players came ready to play and brought a determination and energy that the visitors were just unable to match.

The win also ended a 21-game conference winning streak for the Warriors, who had not lost a Big 5 match since falling at Arcata in October of 2021.

“We came to play tonight,” Arcata head coach Laurie Griffith said. “The girls have been up for it all week.”

Check out the match-winning point and postgame celebrations above …

The Tigers won with a balanced team performance and a steely determination, with several players stepping up for the challenge.

They quickly set the tone for the night with a commanding 25-10 win in the opening set and followed that with a. 25-23 win in set two before sealing the win with a 25-21 win in the third and decisive set.

Harper Appy had another huge night for the victors, finishing with 31 assists and three aces, while Quincy Collins, Nora Brumbaugh and Kyla Kinyon each also impressed for the home team.

Collins finished with eight kills and two blocks and Brumbaugh and Kinyon added seven kills and two blocks.

Addie Day led the Tigers with some outstanding serving and “served up a storm,” according to the coach.

Day finished with three aces and 10 service points.

Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com

Griffith also praised the defensive performances of Bella Campbell, Aliyah Aaron and Josie Cunningham.

“Our offense was on and everything was working tonight,” she added.

Campbell finished with 10 digs and a pair of aces, while Eli Kanzer added four aces.

Pearl Smith also was clutch for the home team and had 14 serves with no errors to go with five kills, while Collins, Kinyon and Alisha Borglund “were tough at the net,” according to Griffith.

The loss was a tough one for the Warriors, who have dominated conference play for the past two years, including an incredible run last year where they did not drop a single set in eight Big 5 games.

Despite the loss, however, they remain well in contention for at least a share of the Big 5 crown after defeating Arcata in Crescent City earlier in conference play.

Both schools are now 5-1 in the Big 5 with two games remaining each.

Lauren Stutes finished with a team-high seven kills for Del Norte, while Bliss Blackburn continued to impress with her all-around game and finished with five kills and 11 digs.

Tsinte Steinruck also had a big night for the visitors and had seven kills and seven digs.

“Tsinte had a great night,” Del Norte coach Petra Lorenzi said of the influential senior, whose seven kills came with just one error. “You can’t ask for much more than that. Ideally we just needed to get her more ball.”

Carlee Harper also impressed defensively and finished the game with a team-high 18 digs.

“Carlee Harper dug a lot of balls back there,” Lorenzi added. “She was big defensively.”

Overall, however, it was a disappointing night for the Del Norte girls, who never really found their rhythm.

“Arcata was just more disciplined tonight,” Lorenzi said. “They did their job and they did it better than we did tonight.

“(Our players) were just a little too hyped up for the game. It’s hard to be the team to follow last year’s team, but they came in, worked hard and really, really wanted it. 

“They tried to do too much.”

The Warriors’ remaining two conference games are at home to McKinleyville (Tuesday) and at Eureka (Oct. 2).

“We’ve got two more games coming up and as long as we win those two …,” Lorenzi said.

The Tigers’ final two Big 5 games, meanwhile, are at home against Fortuna (Tuesday) and at McKinleyville (Thursday).