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NJCAA Region IX North Tournament In Progress
With the top spot in the conference on the line, the Northwest Trappers rallied past Laramie County last week and then beat Eastern Wyoming for another hard-earned win.
The Trappers went into the weekend tied for first place with Laramie County’s Golden Eagles — and they handed the Cheyenne crew their second conference loss in four sets, 23-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-21.
The win didn’t come easily. The Trappers took an early lead, but Laramie County struck back. Trailing 12-6, the Eagles took advantage of a Trapper service error and scored seven straight points for a 13-12 lead. The teams battled back and forth the rest of the way. They were still tied at 23 when the Eagles put the game away.
Set two was intense from the beginning. Several long rallies produced 14 ties. A net violation by the Eagles broke a 16-all tie and Jelena Slijepcevic followed with an ace to begin a four-point Trapper streak and a 20-16 lead. Laramie County rallied, and twice pulled to within a point before Lauryn Dela Cruz ended the set with a winner for the Trappers.
The Eagles seemed to droop a little in set three, and the Trappers took advantage, building an early 8-0 lead and growing it from there. The set ended 25-13 when Holly Pittman and Aleksandra Saric teamed up to score set point.
With their backs to the wall, Laramie County rallied and the teams battled point-for-point early in set four. Midway through, Northwest gained the edge. A Lauga Gauta attack broke an 8-8 tie, and she followed by serving an ace. The Trappers kept that slim lead through several rallies until Pittman rotated into the serve. Northwest won the next six points to lead 21-12. The Eagles could come no closer than three points and a Dela Cruz hit scored match point.
Gauta and Dela Cruz led the Trappers offensively and defensively. Gauta knocked down 15 kills and picked up 15 digs. In addition, she served four aces and assisted on two blocks. Dela Cruz also made 15 digs to go with her 13 kills. Jarvis hit double figures with 10 kills, and Alye Wagner finished with 11 digs. Saric recorded a solo block and two block assists, Slijepcevic one solo block and one assist, Jarvis three assists, and Gauta and Pittman two assists apiece.
With first place securely in hand, the Trappers looked a little shaky in the first set against the Eastern Wyoming Lancers. NWC took an early 5-1 lead, but the Lancers pulled even, 8-8, and then narrowly ahead. In the end, the Lancers stretched a 19-16 lead to 24-17, and scored set point on a Trapper hitting error.
In set two, the Lancers got to the brink of taking a 2-0 lead in the match, holding a 24-20 lead. Eastern’s serve for set point went long, though, and the mistake proved fatal. Reilley Baty stepped to the service line and the Trappers rallied for three straight points to tie things at 24; Dela Cruz kills accounted for two of the points and a block by Maliyah Tela and Pittman led to the third.
Eastern earned another shot at set point, but another Dela Cruz kill tied the score again and put the ball in her hands for the serve. Her first serve wasn’t returned and the Trappers set up Pittman for a kill that scored set point and tied the match.
Set three followed the same scenario, with nearly every point coming after a battle. The Trappers took an 11-6 lead, but the Lancers tied the score at 17 and then went ahead. The Lancers again reached set point with a two-point lead and the serve, but once again, Dela Cruz came through with a kill; Slijepcevic then tipped the ball out of the Lancers’ reach to tie the score at 24. Eastern gave itself another chance at game point, but Dela Cruz tied it again with a kill. The set finally went to the Trappers on two kills by Gauta, 28-26.
Down 2-1, the Lancers continued their efforts to upset Northwest. The Lancers took a 22-19 lead, but Northwest again rallied. The Trappers ripped off three points as they blew past Eastern; Dela Cruz ended the match with an ace.
Dela Cruz finished with 19 kills, Gauta 18 and Mikayla Sellers-Wiebe 11. Dela Cruz and Wagner each made 15 digs to lead the defense, while Gauta and Baty had 10 each. Slijepcevic made a solo block and assisted with another. Jarvis had four assisted blocks, Gauta and Pittman three each, Sellers-Wiebe two, and Jones and Saric one apiece.
“It’s always good before a tournament to have some tough matches,” said NWC coach Shaun Pohlman.
Pohlman said his team wasn’t at its best Saturday after the tough, first place-clinching win the night before, and said that may have accounted for NWC’s struggles against Eastern Wyoming.
“We needed to beat Laramie County Friday, and the team knew it,” Pohlman said. “That was what we prepared for, and after we won it, it’s hard to go back on the court for one more game.”
However, his team’s letdown doesn’t detract from Eastern’s play Saturday, Pohlman indicated, adding that NWC could well meet the Lancers again this week.
Pohlman said his team is back at full strength after some injuries. Sellers-Wiebe gives the team another strong outside hitter and Slijepcevic gives him options at the center position she shares with Maliyah Tela.
“It’s nice having two centers,” he said. “One isn’t better than the other, but they have different strengths. If one is having trouble, I can use the other one.”
Sellers-Wiebe, who is coming off an injured knee, played sparingly on Friday, but her 11 kills made an impact against Eastern, Pohlman said.
Pohlman praised Dela Cruz for her 19 kills against Eastern, many of which came at crucial times.
“She was clutch,” he said. “She stepped up when we really needed someone.”
Jarvis had a big game against Laramie County with 10 kills, Pohlman said, adding that it’s difficult to make 10 kills from Jarvis’ middle blocker position.
The Trappers will be at Central Wyoming in Riverton for the Conference tournament. Play began Wednesday, but the top seeded Trappers got a bye for the first round and will play the winner of an opening round match between Eastern and Western Wyoming at 4 p.m. today (Thursday).
The winner will advance and play Friday at 4 p.m. and hope to reach a Saturday game for the championship.
It’s a true double elimination tournament, so a team can still win the title after suffering one loss.