The most exciting championship race on the North Coast this fall took another twist on Tuesday night.
After opening league play with back-to-back wins over South Fork and St. Bernards, the Ferndale Wildcats lost at home to Hoopa to leave them in a three-way tie for top spot in the standings one third of the way through league play.
Also on Tuesday night, the Crusaders rebounded from a four-sets loss to the Cats with a straight-sets win over South Fork.
The win for the Warriors was their second straight and lifted them to 2-1, along with Ferndale and SB, while South Fork dropped to 0-3.
Hoopa overcame a slow start and won 13-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-21.
Junior Violet King led the Warriors with a team-high eight kills in the win, as well as a team-best four blocks, while teammate Karmen Whitecrane continued her impressive league play with seven kills and six aces.
Vuunsip E-Kor added six kills for Hoopa, while Luella Cosce had a team-high 24 digs and Victoria Nelson-Bautista had 10 digs.
Freshman BellaAnn King also continued to play a pivotal role helping to set her teammates up for success and had a team-high 31 assists.
Hoopa is now 11-13-1 overall.
The Crusaders, meanwhile, won their game 25-14, 25-19, 25-16.
St. Bernard’s head coach Sejay Cyphers was happy with he team’s play and also praised the efforts of their opponents.
“South Fork always comes to play anywhere they go,” she said. “I’m always so impressed with their ability to keep the game fun, even when the outcome isn’t what they may have wanted.
“As a team we played very well. Everyone touched the court and it was awesome to see them playing together with ease. It hasn’t always come that easy this season.”
Sailer Storer was influential in the win, serving eight consecutive points at one stage, while teammate Gabby Qiao had a good night playing libero.
SB’s Serafina Morgan also had a good game playing a different role than normal, according to the coach.
“She is starting to become a strong player and really get a feel for reading the outside hitter on the opposite side of the court,” Cyphers said of the senior standout.
