Ronan still seeking maiden victory

<p>Ronan Maidens Sydnee Clairmont (4) makes contact with the ball during the first set of the Maidens match against the Thompson Falls Bluehawks at Ronan High School Saturday, Sept. 13. The Maidens lost 3-1.</p>

Dulmes block

by John Heglie Special for the Leader Sports@leaderadvertiser.com
| September 17, 2014 10:37 AM

Dulmes block

TFalls 3, Ronan 1

Bluehawks pluck out win over Maidens

At Ronan, visiting Thompson Falls found their talons tethered by the gritty Maiden spikers as host Ronan tried to ground the Bluehawks from taking flight Sept. 13. All of the games were tight, with each outcome hinging on which team was able to best exploit opportunities to their advantage. With the sets tied at one apiece, game 3 was tied thrice in the latter going 16-16, 18-18, 22-22 before the visitors gained the upper hand and iced the crucial third set on a nasty dying floater serve that barely cleared the net. Ronan looked to be in control of game 4 as they stitched together a small cushion, but each time TFalls would rally back to tie 17-17, 20-20, 23-23. McKenzie Dulmes gave the Maidens a one point advantage with a block, but once again the Bluehawks tied things up at 24 apiece to force extras. TFalls eeked out the 4th set when a Ronan return landed barely out of bounds, followed by a difficult dribbler over the net that they couldn’t reach to dig out which ended the match. Over the course of a quartet of games, the Maidens have stretched as many sets into extras, suggestive that minor modifications may turn the tide in a more favorable direction. Ronan (0-1, 0-4) hosts the Plains Lady Trotters this Saturday.

7B TFalls def 6B Ronan 25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 26-24.

KILLS - TFalls 44, Ronan 36 (Sydnee Clairmont 12, Kendra Starkel 9, Dani Richwine 4, Ali Buhr 4, Ashley Peterson 4, McKenzie Dulmes, Jordyn Clairmont). BLOCKS TFalls 6, Ronan (Dulmes 3, S.Clairmont 2, Starkel, Peterson). ASSISTS - TFalls 40, Ronan 25 (S.Clairmont 13, J.Clairmont 9, Buhr, Peterson, Starkel). DIGS - TFalls 66, Ronan 78 (Starkel 26, Richwine 21, Dulmes 12, S. Clairmont 7, Sadie Wirz 5, Buhr 3, Bailey Speagle 3, Peterson). ACES - TFalls 14, Ronan 9 (Starkel 4, Richwine 2, Speagle 2, J.Clairmont).

Loyola 3, Ronan 1

Maidens misfire in Missoula

At Missoula in a 6B conference clash, the visiting Maidens were operating on one less cylinder with the absence of one of their tall talents in the lineup and the host Loyola Sacred Heart Breakers trumped Ronan in the process on Sept 9. Sydnee Clairmont and Kendra Starkel collaborated on 14 Kills, 8 assists and 10 digs.

Loyola def Ronan 25-16, 25-18, 25-15

KILLS - Ronan 23 (Sydnee Clairmont 9, Kendra Starkel 5, Ali Buhr 4, McKenzie Dulmes 2, Dani Richwine 2, Jordyn Clairmont), Loyola 32. BLOCKS - Ronan 0, Loyola 4. ASSISTS - Ronan 13 (S.Clairmont 7, J.Clairmont 4, Starkel, Dulmes), Loyola 28. DIGS - Ronan 32 (Starkel 9, Dulmes 6, Richwine 6, J.Clairmont 5, Shaina Snyder 4, Ashley Peterson, S.Clairmont), Loyola 60. ACES - Ronan 3 (Starkel 2, J.Clairmont), Loyola 7. Maiden stats courtesy of Ronan statistician Kathy Starkel