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Wildcats stay alive at district volleyball Lewiston Tribune October 15, 2023 By CODY WENDT SPORTS STAFF Oct 15, 2023 Updated 6 hrs ago Day 1 action in the Idaho Class 1A Division I District II high school volleyball tournament at Lewis-Clark State?s P1FCU Activity Center proceeded straightforwardly according to seeding, with just one exception. As their season hung in the balance, things finally clicked into place for the seventh-seeded Lapwai Wildcats, who raised their game to upset Potlatch 25-23, 25-14, 25-10 in loser-out play. Lapwai will return to action on Tuesday at 8 p.m., facing the loser of a winner?s bracket semifinal between the No. 1 Troy Trojans and the No. 4 Logos Knights of Moscow. Wildcats break out The No. 7 Wildcats were only seeded one spot below the No. 6 Loggers, but Potlatch had won both regular-season meetings ? handling Lapwai in four sets in a season-opener on Aug. 24, then prevailing in five on Sept. 28. The Loggers (6-12) started Saturday?s match with a hat trick of victories very much in mind as they came out aggressive, rattled off the first five points of the opening set and maintained a substantial lead through the next dozen-or-so rallies. The Wildcats (6-14), however, were not content with the fate that might have seemed in store. The Lapwai roster and coaches kept up vigorous displays of positive energy throughout the match ? including an oft-repeated celebratory dance that involved waving their arms side-to-side in unison ? and seemed to gain confidence and vigor in the process. ?We?ve been working really hard at practice in mentality-building,? Lapwai coach Sequoia Dance-Leighton said. ?Volleyball?s a game of energy and momentum, and we kind of decided ? I think I called a timeout and said, ?We?ve got to get it together and cannot keep letting them ace us.?? A late surge saw the Wildcats snatch the first set from the Loggers 25-23. The second set was like an exaggerated repeat of the first, with Potlatch attempting a reset and leading early only for Lapwai to strike back sooner and harder. A staggering 13-point run from 11 points apiece to 24-11 in that frame blew the match wide open. That momentum carried over into the third, in which the Wildcats had the feel of a well-oiled machine, offering up almost no cheap points while they served and returned ?Our serving was something that really pulled us through,? Dance-Leighton said. Lapwai libero Keasha Kenry ? who wound up playing in three different pairs of shoes over the course of the evening after the ones she arrived in broke ? racked up 13 points off her serve, including five aces. Skylin Parrish added another 14 service points and three aces. Jayden Leighton made five kills, while Samara Powaukee had four of her own and hit the match-winning shot at 24-10 in the third. ?I think they decided that they wanted to all show up at the same time, and that was a really awesome thing to see,? Dance-Leighton said. ?They stayed together as a team; they kept their energy high. They?ve been showing it in practice all season, and they came out today and decided they didn?t want (the season) to be over.? Looking ahead In considering their prospective opponents for Monday, the Wildcats might not be blamed for preferring a crack at the Knights of Moscow over one at the top-seeded Trojans. Lapwai has gone 0-2 this season against Troy (18-1), falling in straight sets both times against the longtime volleyball juggernaut and defending league, district and state champion. Meanwhile, the Wildcats split regular-season meetings with Logos (10-10), falling in four sets on Sept. 7 before avenging themselves in three on Sept. 18. Either way, Dance-Leighton expressed confidence that her team has turned a corner and will continue to show its quality as the tournament enters its closing stages. ?This was one of their best performances so far, and I think it?s only going to go up from here,? she said. ?They have that (winning) feeling, they know what it feels like now, and they?re excited now that they have that leverage. They know what they?re capable of.? Tourney to wrap up this week Earlier Saturday, Lapwai had been sent to the loser-out round by the second-seeeded Kamiah Kubs (17-3) in a 25-13, 25-15, 25-9 decision, while the No. 3 Genesee Bulldogs (13-4) had bested Potlatch 25-18, 25-21, 25-13. The Kubs and Bulldogs will clash in the winner?s bracket semis on Monday at 7:30 p.m. on the opposite side of the draw from the Troy-Logos showdown. Also advancing through Day 1 in loser-out play was fifth-seeded Prairie of Cottonwood (7-11), which eliminated Clearwater Valley of Kooskia (4-18) with a 25-17, 25-22, 25-17 showing and will next take to the court on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. against the loser of Kamiah vs. Genesee. The 1A DI tournament is set to conclude with a title round on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. and a second-place state-qualifying match Thursday at 6 p.m., once again at the Activity Center.
Date: October 14, 2023
Time: 3:00pm
Venue: LCSC
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