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Lady Bulldogs roar past Lady Lions twice to snare district championship

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THOMPSON FALLS — The Mission Lady Bulldogs had a lot of fun winning their first championship district volleyball trophy.

The Lady Bulldogs went 4-0 in Thompson Falls, upset the number one seeded Bigfork Vals, and beat the Eureka Lady Lions twice in one day to win the District 7-B Volleyball Tournament and earn the number one spot at the Western B Divisional Volleyball Tournament, which starts Thursday in Superior.

“Probably about 10 people came up to me after the tournament and told me we were the most fun team to watch,” Mission coach Kendal Anderson said. “They were talking to each other and they were excited.”

Who can blame the Lady Bulldogs, who entered the tourney as the third seed, for being excited? After a slow start in a 25-17, 25-12, 25-13 sweep of Plains, the Lady Bulldogs upended the Vals, a team that beat them both times in the regular season, 25-19, 25-22, 25-11.

“We didn’t just beat them. We beat them in three. It was a pretty big whooping. We never really trailed. Except for maybe at the very start of the game, but once we got the lead we never lost it and kept the momentum the entire match,” Anderson said.

The key to the Lady Bulldogs’ domination of the Vals was their passing, said Anderson.

“Our passing was phenomenal. We were just playing good fundamental volleyball. We were more focused and more ready to go for that game,” Anderson said.

The Lady Bulldogs’ accurate passing set up a vicious attack from their middle hitters Adessa Durglo and Jenn Larsson. The two combined for 18 of the Lady Bulldogs’ 32 kills in the match, with both finishing with nine. 

Mission libero Mackenzie Trudeau, who led the Lady Bulldogs in digs in all four matches, collected 14 of her 70 digs at the tournament in the match against Bigfork.

The upset of the Vals secured a spot for the Lady Bulldogs in the divisional tournament and set them up in the undefeated match Saturday morning against the Lady Lions, who were in the stands to watch the Lady Bulldogs dismantle the Vals.

“I think they (the Lady Lions) were a little scared. They saw us play at our best. It probably was a little intimidating to watch us annihilate Bigfork,” Anderson said.

After dropping the first set 25-23 against the Lady Lions, the Lady Bulldogs came roaring back to win the next three 25-18, 25-19, 25-18 to earn a spot in the championship match.

Larsson led the Lady Bulldogs’ attack, finishing with 11 of their 39 kills. Durglo, who put down 42 kills in the tournament, followed with nine. The two also played some good defense at the net, with each finishing with four blocks.

Trudeau led the team with 20 digs and three aces and Loren Erickson dished out 33 of their 35 assists.

In the championship match the Lady Bulldogs stormed out to a 2-0 lead, but watched the Lady Lions claw their way back to force a fifth game. 

Even if the Lady Lions could’ve won the decisive game, they would’ve had to beat the Lady Bulldogs in another match to win the championship, but that’s not the route that Anderson or her team wanted to go.

“We wanted to win it fair and square and we came back with confidence. I told them not to pass up a chance to attack. It seemed whoever was hitting the ball was scoring points. So I told them it doesn’t matter if they’re not squared up to the ball, or if it’s not the best approach or if the set wasn’t perfect just attack the ball,” Anderson said. “We came out swinging. We started attacking and got the lead and never looked back.”

With the 15-11 victory, the Lady Bulldogs earned their first district championship and will play Valley Christian Thursday at 2 p.m. The winner of the match will face the winner of the Loyola-Thompson Falls match.

“I see no reason why we can’t win the tournament. I see no reason why we should be afraid to play any team at the tournament. We’re on top right now and that’s where we want to stay,” Anderson said.

 

Summary
Mission def. Plains, 25-17, 25-12, 25-13
Kills - Mission 34 (Adessa Durglo 13), Plains 12 (Kayla Revier 3, Jessica Hansen 3). Blocks - Mission 3 (Durglo 2), Plains 2 (two with one). Digs - Mission 49 (Mackenzie Trudeau 15), Plains 35 (Kelsey Beagley 11). Assists - Mission 26 (Loren Erickson 23), Plains 11 (Nikki Kunzer 5, Felicia Earhart 5). Aces - Mission 9 (Trudeau 4), Plains 7 (Kunzer 4).

Mission def. Bigfork, 25-19, 25-22, 25-11.
Kills - Mission 32 (Jenn Larsson 9, Adessa Durglo 9), Bigfork 32 (Mallery Knoll 9). Blocks - Mission 8 (Larsson 3, Durglo 3), Bigfork 0. Digs - Mission 47 (Mackenzie Trudeau 14), Bigfork 36 (Knoll 11). Assists - Mission 28 (Loren Erickson 23), Bigfork 23 (Taylor Peck 12). Aces - Mission 6 (Ashley Courville 2), Bigfork 5 (Kirsten Campbell 3).

Undefeated match
Mission def. Eureka, 23-25, 25-18, 25-19, 25-18.
Kills - Mission 39 (Jenn Larsson 11), Eureka 39. Blocks - Mission 9 (Larsson 4, Adessa Durglo 4), Eureka 6 (Katie Thompson 4). Digs -Mission 61 (Mackenzie Trudeau 20), Eureka 76 (Cassidy Morgan 28). Assists - Mission 35 (Loren Erickson 33), Eureka 29 (Alyssa White 29). Aces - Mission 11 (Trudeau 3), Eureka 15 (Morgan 4, White 4).

Championship match
Mission def. Eureka, 25-13, 25-20, 19-25, 15-25, 15-11.
Kills - Mission 34 (Adessa Durglo 11), Eureka 45 (Selene Elster 15). Blocks - Mission 6 (Ashley Courville 2, Durglo 2), Eureka 11 (Natasha Mikita 7). Digs - Mission 63 (Mackenzie Trudeau 21), Eureka 73 (Jac Lemer 20, White 18). Assists - Mission 29 (Loren Erickson 23), Eureka 42 (Alyssa White 34). Aces - Mission 17 (Courville 5), Eureka 18 (Cassidy Morgan 8).

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