Polson tests full lineup at Anaconda Tip-off volleyball tourney

By Jim Blow
Valley Journal
ANACONDA — Except for the first and last matches, the Polson Lady Pirates were absolutely dominant at last weekend's Anaconda Tip-off volleyball tournament.
Polson appeared a little off-tempo in its first game of the tournament, dropping a 22-25 game to Frenchtown in the 10 a.m. match on Friday, but bounced back to cruise in a 25-12 second game. (Pool play matches were two games to 25 points.)
"It was an early start and we just couldn't get anything going in that first game against Frenchtown," Polson head coach Jan Toth said. "Our serve receive wasn't very good and our rotation was different; that was the first week with Nicole (Davey back in the lineup). It was just getting used to each other ... that first-game loss put the girls in another gear."
In the second game, the team started gelling together. The passing improved and the Lady Pirates put together a very strong offense that simply dominated defenses at the tournament.
After that, Polson went undefeated in four more two-game matches against Southwestern A conference opponents on Friday. Polson beat Corvallis 25-20, 25-13; Stevi 25-22, 25-13; Hamilton 25-16, 25-12; and Anaconda 25-16, 26-11.
Polson finished off pool play Saturday morning with a 25-10, 25-12 sweep of Dillon, earning a spot in the championship against Anaconda.
The Lady Pirates downed the Copperheads 25-15 in the first game, but Anaconda came back to win the championship 25-22, 25-21.
Polson pounded the ball in the first game, but started tipping with Anaconda in the final two games.
"We came out really tough the first game. But in the second game we could never get anything going. They started tipping and we weren't coming in on defense," Toth explained. "We also had a lot of offensive errors hitting out of bounds. We had plenty of opportunities (to win). Some controversial calls took (setter) Kayla (Duford) out of her game. That rattled her a bit ... it definitely changed the momentum of the game. That was tough. But we definitely didn't take charge of that match ... we beat ourselves."
Toth said that's when her squad started playing Anaconda's game of tipping the ball instead of power-hitting through the block.
"When you play the tipping game, you're not going to win. You just wait for someone to make mistakes ... and we made mistakes," Toth said. "Hopefully we'll meet up with them again."
Despite the championship loss, Polson was the dominant team in the tournament and the squad most teams had their sights on.

Davey returned from a trip to Scotland for a family wedding in high style, after knocking off the rust in that first game against Frenchtown, her timing came back with a vengeance. Davey finished the tournament with 74 kills, averaging 6.2 kills per game with a kill percentage of .457.
Breanne Kelley also pounded out 34 kills, averaging 2.8 kills per game, followed by middle-hitter Sallie Sams at 2.3 per game and Christa Red Crow at 1.8 per game.
Sams led Polson with eight blocks, followed by Kelley with seven.
Libero Staci Benson had 60 digs in the tournament, averaging five per game, while Duford averaged 12.8 assists per game and served up a team-high 18 aces.
As a team, Polson's serve percentage was an impressive 93.3 percent, including 52 aces for a 4.3 average per game.
"It was incredible this weekend. I definitely had the quickest and hardest hitting girls in the tournament," coach Toth noted. "Our passing improved and overall our serving took most people out of their offensive scheme."
Polson's offense also looked aggressive for most of the tournament.
"Nicole (Davey) had a very strong tournament, as did Sallie Sams. Both of their hitting averages were stellar. And Kayla Duford did an amazing job setting the ball up. I think her game went to a higher level at the tournament," Toth said.
Red Crow also gave opponents a fit hitting from the right side with her left arm.
"Teams could not figure her out. Christa does a great job placing and pounding the ball," Toth said.
The coach also credited Benson and Marissa McCrea for their defense.
"I can't say enough about how hard they work in the backcourt," Toth noted.
Sophomore Riley Kenney also played well in rotation as a middle-hitter, picking up 13 kills and three blocks.
"Riley came in on a lot of situations, playing middle, right and left side. She puts up one heck of a block and when she gets a chance to put the ball down, she did. She didn't have a lot of kills, but when she did, she did well," Toth explained.
The coach said she was pleased with her team's progress and hopes to get a little quicker offense going.
Polson returns to conference play with a match in Ronan tonight, Thursday, before hosting Columbia Falls on Saturday, with the freshman game beginning at 4:15, followed by junior varsity and varsity matches.

Summary
Anaconda Tip-off Tournament
Sept. 11-12, 2009
Friday
Polson split vs. Frenchtown 22-25, 25-12
Polson def. Corvallis 25-20, 25-13
Polson def. Stevi 25-22, 25-13
Polson def. Hamilton 25-16, 25-12
Polson def. Anaconda 25-16, 26-11
Saturday
Polson def. Dillon 25-10, 25-12
Championship
Anaconda def. Polson
15-25, 25-22, 25-21.