Polson volleyball wins two

POLSON - Frenchtown was in trouble last Tuesday night, something that usually happens to visiting volleyball teams coming into "the Pirate Ship" a.k.a. Linderman Gymnasium in Polson.

"We had the momentum the whole time and we would get a lead and hold that lead the entire match," Polson head coach Jan Toth said.

Against Frenchtown, the Lady Pirates won 3-0, with the games going 25-15, 25-19, 25-13 thanks to a 33-to-13 team advantage in the kills category. Junior Riley Kenney led the team with 13 kills but it was eight aces by senior libero Kendyall Rochin that set the tone.

"We served really tough to keep the momentum," Toth said. "That was really important to us. Early on in the season we were struggling with serving and that's now a bright spot for us."

The Lady Pirates got a considerably tougher fight from Columbia Falls on Thursday night, who came into the match winless, but with a chip on their shoulder.

"They came in scrappy and they had nothing to lose," Toth said. "They came in with a job to do."

Polson won 3-0 but there were 17 times both teams were tied in the 25-17, 25-21, 25-19 games. The second game almost tipped in the Wildkats favor as they trailed just 22-21 before the Lady Pirates closed them out.

"My girls would start to be in panic mode and they would tip the ball," Toth said. "Columbia Falls picked up every tip. They can't do that [tipping], we had to get up and put the ball down. When we're not putting the ball down it's hard to maintain a lead."

Columbia Falls threatened once again in the third and clinching game, trailing just 19-17 before senior Sallie Sams imposed her will.

"There was an overkill that Sallie Sams put down on the 10-foot line," Toth said. "It was the hardest hit ball on the night."

Senior Breanne Kelley rifled off a flurry of kills after that to seal the game. She ended up leading the match in kills with 18 out of the 27 balls set to her. Sams had 13 kills and Kenney had 11. Polson will host Whitefish at 3 p.m. on Saturday

INJURY UPDATE: While all of the Lady Pirates are able to play, three players do have nagging injuries that are limiting them in practice. Sams has a foot injury that has limited her running in practice, while Kelley and Kenney have shoulder issues that limit how hard they can go in practice.