Lady Pirates falter against Whitefish
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
Polson hosted a non-conference and a conference game last week.
Against Loyola, Polson won 25-14, 25-19, 26-24. The Heart Breakers, a top Class B state contender, couldn’t seem to break through Polson’s defense.
“My girls were prepared for their attacks and took care of it,” head coach Jan Toth said. “Loyola had a difficult time with our tough serves. Each of my girls went into battle mode when they were back at the service line … I was proud of my girls collectively. That was the best team play we have had all year, and that was without standout hitter Heidi Rausch who (was) out with an ankle injury.”
Polson played Whitefish on Thursday, and the Lady Bulldogs won 25-21, 25-22, 25-20, 25-21.
“The games were so close, battling back and forth for the lead most of the time, it was the team that made the least mistakes that came out on top, which was Whitefish,” Toth said. “We were all over the place on defense, girls not playing in their spots, which caused a ton of errors with our digging. We have to do a much better job trusting one another on the court, trusting that their teammates will do their job on each play, and that has not always been the case this year, forcing some of our quick defensive players to have to play out of position and play for two or three players. You are not going to win like that.”
Heidi Rausch had 17 kills against the Lady Bulldogs, and setter Shalaina Duford had a great night connecting well on the set, Toth noted.
“I was so impressed with the two of them. They are as good as you will get in the state ... they are just fun to watch,” she said.
Sophomores Jaiden Toth and Kaelen Wall also had a standout game, with Wall tallying six kills.
“Whitefish is good, but we gave them way too many free points,” Toth said. “We will see them again at divisionals, and we will be ready for them.”
