File photo – The Arcata Tigers

Del Norte and Arcata kept the pressure on conference leaders Eureka with victories on Thursday night.

The Warriors hosted McKinleyville and won 25-19, 25-13, 25-22, while the Tigers welcomed Fortuna to Arcata High and won 25-13, 25-21, 25-11.

With the wins, both teams improved to 2-1 in the Big 5 and they remain right behind Eureka (2-0) in the standings.

For the Arcata girls, there was no letdown after a big emotional win over Del Norte two days earlier.

“We played very consistent volleyball and had excellent defense,” Arcata head coach Laurie Griffith said. 

Senior Nora Brumbaugh, who is one of this week’s Humboldt Sports Athletes of the Week, continued to play a key role for her team in the win.

Brumbaugh finished with a team-high 12 kills.

Pearl Smith also impressed for Arcata and had 10 kills and five aces, as did Harper Appy, who finished with 32 assists and four kills.

Eli Kanzler added 14 service points and three aces, while Karely Ruiz led the team defense with 12 digs.

No stats were immediately available for the Huskies.

Up in Crescent City, meanwhile, the Warriors quickly put Tuesday’s loss at Arcata behind them.

“Overall, we’re continuing to grow and continuing to work on the small things,” Del Norte coach Petra Lorenzi said. 

Bliss Blackburn, who is the second Humboldt Sports Athlete of the Week, had another good night in the win and finished with a co-team-high eight kills, along with impressive sophomore Makayla Blakeslee.

Melody Brennan added six kills, Bella Arriola had five and Jeana Erler had three.

Another sophomore, Sierra Brennan, had two aces.

File photo – The Del Norte Warriors

“We struggled at times kind of keeping our energy up, but when they needed to they anchored down and finished the job,” Lorenzi said.

The Panthers caused their hosts plenty of problems as they continue to build momentum.

“Last night Mack played the best game that I have seen since I started coaching at MHS,” Panthers head coach Ashley Washburn said. “The cohesiveness and confidence were incredible.”

The McKinleyville players never gave up the fight and continued to battle all the way through while showcasing a mental toughness, with junior Karly Beck coming up with a big save late in the game to keep a rally going.

“I’m really excited for next week. It feels like a brand new team,” Washburn added.

The Loggers, who got the better of Arcata in a thrilling conference opener last week, had a bye on Thursday.

Next up in conference action, on Tuesday, Eureka travels to Fortuna and Arcata makes the short trip to McKinleyville, while Del Norte has a bye.

On Thursday of next week, Del Norte travels to Eureka for a pivotal showdown to close out the first half of the Big 5 schedule for both schools.

And Lorenzi is expecting a battle against the conference leaders.

“They have some size, they have some power,” she said. 

In the corresponding game last year, the Loggers won in straight sets to end the Warriors’ championship ambitions, and it’s something the Del Norte girls have not forgotten.

“That still stings a bit,” Lorenzi said.

Interestingly, the Warriors will play home games against both Arcata and Eureka over the second half of conference play, which could be an advantage for them in what is shaping up to be a tight race for this year’s championship.

In Little 4 action on Thursday, the Ferndale Wildcats quickly bounced back from a conference-opening defeat against St. Bernard’s with a four-sets win at Hoopa.

The Cats won 22-25, 25-21, 26-24, 25-17.

Junior Wau’Kel Blake finished with a team-high 15 kills for the Warriors, who dropped to 1-1 in the conference play.

Chloe King and Vuunsip E-Kor each added five kills for Hoopa, while Naress Crawford had a team-high four aces and Luella Cosce led the team with 18 digs.

No stats were immediately available for Ferndale.