Two days after a statement win over defending league champion Eureka, the Arcata Tigers continued to roll on the volleyball court, improving to 2-0 in Pacific League action.
Barely.
The Arcata girls traveled to Del Norte and won in five sets, overcoming a slow start and a two-set deficit with a big finish to the night.
Arcata won 19-25, 14-25, 25-18, 25-23, 15-13.
Also in league play on Thursday night, the Eureka girls made the short trip to McKinleyville and got back on track with a straight-sets win, 25-17, 25-18, 25-14.
The long trip north appeared to affect the Arcata players early in their match, but they grew in stature as the night went on.
“We started off very flat and it took us a couple games to get going,” Arcata head coach Laurie Griffith said. “Del Norte played amazingly and pushed us to our limits.”
The Tigers responded with a relatively comfortable win in the third set, before displaying a lot of composure on the way to taking the final two sets by the narrowest of margins.
“Our girls dug deep and pulled it together for the win,” Griffith said.
Freshman Lotus Low served the game-winning point, showing no nerves in such a pressure filled moment.
“Very proud of the girls for not giving up and fighting through a rough night,” Griffith said.
There were several standouts in the win, including Betty Miles, who finished with a team-high 10 kills, as well as Colby Eisner and Kyla Kinyon, each of whom added eight kills.
Kinyon also had two blocks, while Eli Kanzler finished with 14 service points and eight digs, Low had four aces and six digs, and Karely Ruiz dished out 26 assists.
No stats were available for Del Norte, which dropped to 1-2 in Pacific League action.
Coaches are encouraged to forward details to Humboldt Sports if they would like their players included in our roundups.
Eureka 3, McKinleyville 0
The Eureka players took care of business against the Panthers, winning in straight sets to keep pressure on the league leaders.
With the win, the Loggers improved to 2-1 in the Pacific League, while McKinleyville dropped to 1-1.
“Glad we were able to bounce back tonight and play well,” Eureka head coach Stephanie Napoleon said. “I was happy with our energy and execution tonight.”
The Panthers, to their credit, kept battling, and according to head coach Ashley Washburn there were a lot of bright spots.
“I’m proud of them pushing through obstacles that may not have been seen from the outside,” Washburn said. “Despite falling in three I saw them fighting until the end and keeping their spirits up.”
Tiarah Maualuga led the way offensively for the Loggers and finished with a team-high 13 kills, as well as five digs, while Alena Battle added eight kills and two blocks.
Ramona Dusel also impressed for the visitors and had 18 assists, a block and three aces, while Violla Kingsang had six assists and four digs, and Eddy Hale had 15 digs and an ace.
Jade Willoughby (two blocks and two kills), Makenzie Wolff (four kills), Ezzy Antonio (four kills and a block) and Kylee Secor (six digs and two aces) each also contributed to the win.
Washburn believes her players will continue to develop after games like this.
“Eureka has a strong team all around and we always love competing against them,” the McKinleyville coach said. “It’s early in league and we are looking forward to coming back stronger on Tuesday against Del Norte.”
The McKinleyville JVs fared better, winning in two sets, while the Mack freshmen girls battled all the way before coming up just short in their match.
