VB: Scarlets finish season at divisionals against tough competition

BUTTE - Following a grueling weekend in Noxon on Oct. 28-29 in which they took second place, only finishing behind an undefeated Superior team, the Arlee Scarlets ran out of gas in Butte this weekend at divisionals.

The Scarlets opened up play on Nov. 4, falling to a tough Ennis team 25-16, 25-14, 25-10. Arlee head coach Brian Big Sam said that while Ennis was one of the toughest teams they played this season, the Scarlets should have given them more of a match than they did.

"The girls just didn't go in ready," Big Sam said. "If they did, we could have advanced further. They didn't play to their potential."

The Scarlets found themselves on the defensive for most of the game, with Becca Nelson recording 13 of Arlee's 89 digs (Ennis as a team had 16), while Mahalia Hendren and Whitney Malatare each blocked three Ennis spike attempts. Malatare also added seven kills and Cortney Dix 13 assists in the loss.

Despite falling to Ennis, Arlee had a chance to advance further when they met familiar foe Charlo in a loser-out match. The Scarlets and Lady Vikings had split four meetings prior to their divisional clash and this would prove to be the season's rubber match. Unfortunately for Arlee, the Lady Vikings not only claimed the season-series win, they ended the Scarlets' year 25-18, 25-17, 25-14.

Big Sam said that typically, it's easier rather than tougher to see a team for the fifth time, but his girls just weren't up to the task on Friday.

"We needed to be ready to play and advance to the next level," Big Sam said.

Hendren again answered the bell with a team-leading 12 kills and three blocks, while Skyla Perry added 17 of the Scarlets' 75 digs. Dix once again led Arlee in assists with 16 and she and Malatare contributed the team's only two aces.

Big Sam didn't make any excuses for the team's early exit at divisionals, but did say that he saw signs of fatigue after six full matches in just two days the weekend prior, along with travel from Arlee to Noxon, back to Arlee and then to Butte.

"We came into practice on Monday after districts and the girls were still tired," Big Sam said. "It does wear on your body if you're not used to it."

Despite not getting the results they hoped for in Butte, Big Sam was proud of his girls.

"I was very happy with the season," Big Sam said. "We went to districts as the three seed and came out in second place. That speaks a lot about our team."