Spikers work on getting kinks out

WHITEFISH °ª There were a lot of new faces on the volleyball courts Saturday at the Whitefish Season Starter Tournament.

Time flies in the world of high school athletics, but how odd was it to watch Whitefish play volleyball without a Ferda on the team?

How strange was it to see Bigfork take the court without 6-foot-3 middle hitter Alyssa Fierro?

But one thing is the same °ª Libby°¯s Jackie Mee still owns the net.

In a day filled with two-game matches and no real stats turned in, the 6-foot-1 junior middle hitter was an imposing presence for more than one opponent.

None of the 11 teams at the tournament emerged unscathed. In fact, no one escaped with less than three losses.

Mee and the Loggers got off to a slow start °ª they split with Park High, then dropped both games to Stillwater Christian, but the Loggers bounced back to win the rest of their games.

°°(Mee) did a nice job at the net for us and I°¯m counting on that. We have some other kids starting to step up,°± said Libby coach Cindy Ostrem-Johnston.

°°We have a bunch of new rotations and new players this year because we (graduated) quite a bit. So, at the beginning we were kind of shaky, nervous, not knowing who was next to us,°± Mee said.

°°We weren°¯t used to it. But by the end of the day, we started to click and we played well toward the end.

°°We have a totally new team, pretty much. It°¯s different, but we°¯re doing well with it. We°¯re picking up the changes pretty well,°± Mee said.

°°(Things were) not so good at the beginning of the day,°± agreed Ostrem-Johnston.

°°I thought we started out pretty slow and pretty poorly. But I°¯m pleased with the way we finished that.

°°I talked to the girls. I said … I°¯m not going to get mad about mistakes. I°¯ll bear with that. I understand that. We have a lot of different rotations, different people out on the floor and we don°¯t have a lot of varsity experience.

°°The thing I was disappointed with at the start was the low energy and lack of enthusiasm,°± she said.

°°We talked to them and I thought they responded well,°± she added. °°I said, I don°¯t want to see any more balls hit the floor without bodies hitting the floor.

°°If we can keep improving from here, I think we°¯ll be in good shape, but I°¯m glad we have two more tournaments,°± she smiled.

°°I think all in all, it was a real good day for everybody,°± said Whitefish coach and tournament organizer Jackie Fuller.

°°It was a lot of volleyball. The play kind of slowed down and got a little sloppy as teams got tired, but what a great opportunity to come out and do this.

°°Every coach that talked to us said it was a great day and what a great chance to play volleyball,°± she added.

As for the Bulldogs, they were a little rough around the edges, as was every team that played Saturday.

°°But that°¯s OK. We°¯re young. We°¯re real young. This is only going to help us get better and better. I°¯m excited about what I saw. I°¯m proud of my kids,°± Fuller said.

°°It°¯s there, but it°¯s going to take some time,°± she added.

°°But it was a great day, a lot of games. It was good for the sport of volleyball,°± Fuller said.

Scores

Main Court

In cases of a split: the score for first team listed is first

Whitefish def. Ronan 25-15, 25-11

Belgrade, Browning split: 25-10, 15-25

Whitefish, Stillwater Christian split: 23-25, 25-18

Polson def. Browning 25-11, 25-16

Columbia Falls def. Park 25-20, 25-15

Belgrade def. Bigfork 25-11, 25-16

Whitefish def. Park 25-15, 25-11

Stillwater Christian def. Ronan 25-20, 25-16

Polson, Ronan split: 15-25, 25-15

Libby def. Whitefish 25-19, 25-24

Libby def. Columbia Falls 25-14, 25-20

Bigfork def. Stillwater Christian 25-8, 25-24

Flathead Home School def. Browning 25-17, 25-22

South Court

Bigfork, Polson split: 25-24, 19-25

Flathead Home School, Columbia Falls split: 25-21, 18-25

Park, Libby split: 25-23, 9-25

Bigfork def. Ronan 25-18, 25-15

Stillwater Christian def. Libby 25-17, 25-20

Polson, Flathead Home School split: 25-15, 24-25

Columbia Falls def. Browning 25-18, 25-12

Libby def. Flathead Home School 25-19, 25-23

Whitefish, Belgrade split: 19-25, 25-20

Bigfork def. Browning 25-10, 25-22

Stillwater Christian, Park split: 25-23, 24-25

Belgrade def. Ronan 25-11, 25-16

Belgrade, Polson split: 25-24, 16-25

Whitefish, Columbia Falls split: 21-25, 25-18