Lady Logger netters fall twice on the road

The Lady Loggers started a tough road trip Saturday in Whitefish, suffering defeat at the hands of the Lady Bulldogs in straight sets, 25-18, 25-7 and 25-19. They then trekked to Columbia Falls, where they took the conference-undefeated Wildkats to four games before falling.

“I felt like we could have competed better, despite the fact that we were missing four varsity players and switched to a 5-1 offense,” said head coach Cindy Ostrem-Johnston.

Two Libby players were out for the ACT, one was sidelined with an injury and another was attending a funeral, leaving the Lady Loggers short-handed in a tough pair of matches.

The Lady Loggers managed only 14 team kills against Whitefish, led by India Croucher with five. Whitefish more than doubled that offensive output, smacking 30 kills with 10 from Kate Doorn. The Lady Bulldogs also posted up seven aces, with three of from Cailyn Ross. Libby had just three from the entire team, two coming from Mehki Sykes.

At Columbia Falls, the Wildkats got off to a strong start, picking up the first two sets 25-8 and 25-16, before the Lady Loggers stormed back to a 21-25 win. The ‘Kats put it away in the fourth with a 25-9 win to seal the victory.

The Loggers offense showed more life in Columbia Falls, putting up 25 kills, led by Mehki Sykes with seven. It wasn’t enough to power them through the ‘Kats, though, who hit 51 kills against the Lady Loggers. Libby had four aces in the match, two of which came from India Croucher. Columbia Falls had 10 as they improved to 12-0 in Northwest A competition.

The Lady Loggers end the regular season at 5-3 in conference play and 7-9 overall. The district tournament is set for Saturday in Thompson Falls.