Scarlets punch divisional ticket with scrappy play

Whitney Malatare rises to connect on a kill attempt during Friday’s match against Noxon.

Bailey Rice corralls a ball in Arlee’s battle with Noxon on Friday. Arlee won the match 3-1.

by Jaren Haser
| November 1, 2012 2:08 PM

Bailey Rice corralls a ball in Arlees battle with Noxon on Friday. Arlee won the match 3-1.

FRENCHTOWN — The Scarlets kept their season alive on Monday after surviving a brutal battle with Seeley-Swan in the Western C divisional play-in match, topping the Lady Blackhawks in five games 25-20, 5-25, 26-24, 18-25, 15-12.

Arlee head coach Brian BigSam said what allowed the team to eek out the victory Monday was the Scarlets team chemistry, something that returned recently with Mahalia Hendren back in the lineup.

“They played together as a team, so they improved a lot,” BigSam said. “They stepped up and had their moments, but just like any team, they came together very well, especially when we really needed it.”

The Scarlets had to overcome a significant size advantage held by the Lady Blackhawks, who have four players standing 5-foot-10 or over.

BigSam said they were able to do this simply by not shying away from the towering Seeley-Swan girls and by attacking the net aggressively.

“They handled themselves well,” BigSam said. “They went out there and they challenged them each time that they went up to the net. That’s all you need to do when you have big girls like that, is just challenge them.”

Hendren led the attack for Arlee, tallying 13 kills against the Lady Blackhawks, while Whitney Malatare, Alexis Shick and Violet Pablo each scored eight in the match.

Skyla Perry helped from the service line by notching a team-high four aces, but Pablo, Morgan Malatare and Megan Tanner weren’t far behind with three apiece.

Bailey Rice topped the team with eight digs on the night and accounted for seven assists, good for second on the team behind Morgan Malatare’s eight.

Arlee next head to Butte for the Western C divisional tournament on Nov. 1, when they will take on Manhattan Christian at 10 a.m. The winner will take on District 10-C champs Hot Springs at 2:30 p.m.

To earn a spot in the play-in game, the Scarlets first had to make it out of the district tournament last weekend, and barely did so by taking third place.

“They did really good,” BigSam said. “They couldn’t hold it quite together on Saturday, but they played awesome on Friday.”

Arlee’s “awesome” play on Friday helped them pick up wins in both of its matches, first taking down No. 5 seed Noxon 25-16, 25-21, 17-25, 25-20 and then top-seeded Superior 25-22, 25-21, 26-24.

Pablo was dominant against Noxon, leading the team in kills (12), aces (nine) and blocks (two), while Perry posted a team-high nine digs in the match. Rice topped the Scarlets in assists with 12.

Whitney Malatare led the attack for Arlee against Superior, putting down 11 kills for the Scarlets. She also had two blocks in the match, tying for the team lead with Shick and Pablo.

Pablo, Hendren and Rice each tallied four digs to lead the team, with Rice also claiming the team-high in assists (nine) and Pablo scoring four of the team’s 11 aces.

BigSam said the players were on top of their game on Friday and really showed what the can do when they are clicking.

“All six girls played well together,” BigSam said. “They all helped each other complementing one another...They stood out as a team as a whole.”

However, the Scarlets’ play would fall off just the slightest on Saturday, causing them to fall against eventual champions Hot Springs, before being ousted from the tournament by Superior in their rematch.

The Scarlets forced the Hot Springs match into five games, losing the first two 25-20 and 25-22 before battling back with two wins of their own 25-22 and 25-19. However, it was the Savage Heat who would come out on top in the final set 15-9.

Pablo again reached double-digit kills, tallying 10 to lead the team, while also coming up with four blocks in the match.

Meanwhile, Rice’s 13 digs and 11 assists were good enough for the team lead, as were Perry’s four aces.

The tough loss may have softened up the Scarlets for Superior, which would have its revenge by sweeping Arlee 25-20, 25-18, 27-25.

Hendren led the Scarlets in kills (eight), blocks (two) and aces (two), while Perry turned in a team-high seven digs and Rice again led with six assists. Pablo also had two aces against the Lady Bobcats to match Hendren’s mark.