Troy gets third, faces Mission in Divisionals

Eureka proved to be the big cats in conference by slipping past Troy and Thompson Falls for the District 7-B volleyball title. 

The Lady Lions have been making a case for their strength all season, and proved their might with wins over the other two top teams in the district.

Troy played Eureka in the second match of the day and won the first set 25-21. Unfortunately for the Lady Trojans, senior Libero Alanah True-Silva, coming off ACL surgery in the summer, dinged her knee and went out for the rest of the day.

Junior Megan Hight, a defensive specialist, stepped up into True-Silva’s role, but a talented Lady Lions squad exploited the defensive hit Troy took and took the next two games by close margins, 25-18 and 25-23, before blowing the Lady Trojans out 25-12 in the fourth set.

“Eureka’s a good team,” Troy head coach Sandra Beal said. “They always have been. But we played some really close games with them.”

Kellie Lundin, a junior outside hitter, led Troy with 11 kills and two aces. Senior middle blocker Michaela Curry notched three blocks. Those two were effective on the net, but Eureka’s 17-6 ace advantage was difficult to overcome.

Eureka then beat presumptive champion Thompson Falls in five sets to claim first in conference. The Bluehawks finished second, Troy claimed third by beating number four Bigfork. Plains was eliminated in the day’s first game.

Troy battled Bigfork in its second game, and the unique environment of the Bigfork gym played a factor in all the District games.

“The Bigfork gym has a low ceiling,” Beal said. “It came into play on all sides.”

The Lady Trojans put it together and beat the Valkyries 3-2; 25-19, 17-25, 10-25, 25-22, 15-10.

Junior right-side hitter Katie Lundin had five aces and a block. The Vals were statistically very impressive, leading in blocks and digs, but Troy took the game and will face Mission next, 4 p.m. Thursday in Ronan at Divisionals.

The Lady Trojans beat Mission earlier this season, and Beal knows not to count and instant win.

“They are a very scrappy team,” she said. “They have some good power hitters, but you’ve got to earn your points on them.”

“Good communication has got to happen.”