Scarlets stay strong

ARLEE — Going into the district tournament, the Arlee volleyball team is on a two-game winning streak.

The Scarlets lost to Mission 25-18, 22-25, 13-25, 13-25 last Tuesday before beating Lincoln 25-16, 25-15, 25-10 last Friday and St. Regis 26-24, 25-10 25-16.

“I was really happy that we won, but I’m sad it’s my last home game,” senior outside hitter Chelsea Allaire said after the St. Regis game.

Against Mission, the Scarlets won the first set but were unable to win any more.

“We killed [Mission] in the first game and then, I don’t know, something happened and we lost,” Allaire said. “We beat them the first time and we’re hoping to beat them the second time because it was their senior night.”

Head coach Brian Bigsam said Mission was ready and out for revenge.

“Mission was mentally ready in the first game,” he said. “They really brought it for the rest of the game.”

Despite the loss, Bigsam said his team wasn’t too upset over the game.

“They were fine,” he said. “It was okay because we beat them before. They didn’t blow us out.”

Junior Melissa Ivanoff had 13 digs while sophomore setter Cortney Dix had 11 kills and nine assists.

Arlee rebounded against Lincoln, winning in three sets.

“It was good, we knew what to expect because we had seen them in tournaments,” Bigsam said.

With a team total of 18 aces, junior hitter Cassandra Kline and sophomore middle hitter Becca Nelson each had five. Dix contributed 13 assists and Allaire had six digs.

The Scarlets carried the win over to the next night. After honoring their seniors, Arlee capped their senior night with a three-set win.

After giving up two points in the first set, Arlee worked their way to a 9-7 lead. With kills from Kline and Allaire, the Scarlets pulled to a 13-7 lead. St. Regis battled to a 13-all tie and took the lead before Allaire and Kline put up a huge block for Arlee to take the lead. Junior backrow specialist Maria Pablo added an ace to bring the game to 21-18. St. Regis went on a roll and tied the game at 22 points. Allaire tallied a kill and Kline lightly put the ball over the net for the set win.

In the second set, Arlee started in a two-point hole before a block by Dix, a kill by Kline and an ace by Allaire put the Scarlets on top ,4-2. Kline served two aces and freshman hitter Mahalia Hendren had a kill to increase their lead to 10-6. The next five Arlee points came on kills, ending the second set.

The third set was a continuation of the second set. Dix had two aces in a row putting the Scarlets up 12-3. Hendrenson tipped the ball over and Allaire added a kill for a 15-7 lead. Dix served two more aces for the win, ending the game with six aces and 14 assists. Allaire led with nine kills and six digs.

Up next, Arlee will play at Two Eagle River in its district tournament.

“I think a loss, going into the tournaments would have brought us down,” Allaire said.

Bigsam thinks his team is able to compete with every other team in the district. Hot Springs and Charlo are sitting at No. 1 and No. 2.

“When we played Charlo, they had experience on their side,” he said.

Now, his team has gained a season of varsity volleyball under their belts and it has leveled the playing field.

“When you go into districts, it’s a whole new ball game,” Bigsam said. “Everyone’s records are wiped out.”