Lady Pirates fend off Frenchtown for key win before falling to Libby in five games

<p class="p1">Heidi Rausch puts away the first set for Polson on one of her 18 kills against Frenchtown.</p>

by Jaren Haser
| November 1, 2012 2:17 PM

LIBBY — The Lady Pirates capped off the regular season by splitting their final two matches, downing Frenchtown last Thursday 25-22, 26-28, 27-25, 25-17 before falling to Libby on the road Friday 22-25, 25-16, 17-25, 25-18, 15-6.

Polson was hitting on all cylinders against Frenchtown, according to head coach Jan Toth.

“We just played absolutely some of the best volleyball that I have seen,” Toth said.

The two evenly-matched teams made for an exciting fight that could very well have ended up with either team coming out on top.

“It was just a battle back-and-forth,” Toth said. “They have tremendous hitters, we have tremendous hitters. They have a great defense, we have a great defense. It was who was going to make less mistakes, that’s what it came down to.”

Heidi Rausch was aggressive at the net as usual and topped the team with 18 kills on the Thursday in front of a home crowd. Rausch also paced the team with three blocks.

Setting up Rausch for most of her kills was Shalaina Duford, who racked up 38 of the team’s 43 assists. However, it was one set in particular that stood out on the night.

There was a moment when Duford had tripped over Rausch while trying to chase down a ball, falling to the ground and losing her shoe. Unfazed, Duford still managed to track down the ball and set a “perfect outside hit” to Chloie Huerta.

“That just shows what a great athlete Shay is,” Toth said.

The Lady Pirates were just as impressive on defense, especially Mackenzie Banner and Jaiden Toth.

Banner, who has been a defensive star throughout the season, turned in 38 digs for Polson.

“I believe that girl doesn’t know anything other than excellent,” Jan Toth said.

Jaiden Toth appears to be well on her way to following in Banner’s footsteps, after a strong outing against the Lady Broncs.

“That was the best defensive game that she has played,” Jan Toth said. “They couldn’t get anything around her, she just lit up that court defensively.”

Chelsea Chowning, meanwhile, delivered three aces from the service line to lead the team.

While Polson looked nearly flawless against Frenchtown, Friday’s match against Libby was a different story.

With the Lady Pirates’ second-place conference standing already sewn up, Toth used the match to mix up her lineup and give some reserve players more experience.

“I went into this game knowing I needed to put some players in, because it wasn’t an imperative for us,” Toth said. “I wanted to see what some players could do.”

While Toth said she “couldn’t have asked for more” from the players that came off the bench, this experimentation with the lineup may have shed light on some issues the team will need to address moving forward.

At the root of these problems is “team unity.”

“I should be able to mix up the team, put a couple different players in, and our team should be able to hold their composure,” Toth said. “And sometimes, that’s not the case.”

The other area of concern has been mental miscues, which reared their ugly head once again against the Loggers.

“We just could not make key serves, we missed way too many again,” Toth said. “For every good thing we did, we made seven errors.”

In terms of addressing this problem, Toth said that will be up to the players.

“I can’t teach them any more skills,” Toth said. “They are by far the most fundamentally great team to watch. It’s now mental, and I can’t give that to them.”

Things weren’t all bad, however, as the Lady Pirates still received some of the high-level of play they are used to at times.

Tanisha Matt, who is still hindered by a sprained ankle, showed up in particular against the Loggers according to Toth.

“She did so well in Libby with the block,” Toth said. “That’s all I called on her to do was block, because I wanted her to get her footwork and confidence back.”

Rausch led the team with 19 kills, while Duford again topped Polson in assists with 20. Huerta would collect team-high three blocks on the night and Jaiden Toth served up four aces to pace the Lady Pirates.

Polson (8-5, 5-3) now looks to polish out the mistakes that plagued them against Libby, as they head to the Northwestern A divisional tournament on Nov. 2 to take on the Loggers once again.

Despite coming off the tough loss, Toth believes the Lady Pirates certainly have the ability to capture their third-straight divisional title.

“In my heart, we are the best team in the conference, now we’ve just got to show it,” Toth said.

Toth is also hoping that she will be able to fully utilize some of her more banged up players like Matt and Jessica Hoel, who she rested during Friday’s match to prepare for divisionals.

“Hopefully she’ll be in full force, because she is one of the most powerful outside hitters that we have and in the conference,” Toth said.