Vals take down Lions in home opener, lose to Florence

The Valkyries defeated conference foes

Eureka (Lincoln) in a tight five game volleyball match Thursday

night at home, but on Friday night it was Bigfork that went

returned from a road match with a loss as Florence swept them in

three games in nonconference play.

Florence, a District 6B volleyball

powerhouse, snuck through with a 25-21 victory in the first match

before speeding past the Vals 25-14 and 25-16 in the two matches

that followed.

“Florence is tough. They are what I

consider to be maybe one of the toughest teams in the (Western B)

division,” said Bigfork head volleyball coach Tracy Wicklund. “I

wouldn’t be surprised if they went to state and maybe win it. They

are a very, very good team.”

Bigfork was able to get 12 kills

against Florence, five of which Melissa VanDerveer was responsible

for. Tessa Robertson was the Vals’ leader at the net with three of

their four blocks. Bigfork had 43 digs, led by Shelby Scoggins,

Taylor Peck and Kianna Wicklund, who each had nine. Peck made six

of her team’s seven assists and two of the Vals’ six aces, while

Wicklund accounted for another three aces.

“I was proud of how our girls never let

down,” Wicklund said. “They kept working and doing what they were

supposed to do. Florence was just the better team that day.”

Wicklund added that her team took a lot

away from the loss since Florence is such a solid team.

“We know what we need to work on,”

Wicklund said. “They hit stronger, they are scrappy, they don’t let

things hit the ground, they had really good block coverage and they

have a really strong front line. They are a really tough team and

they are what we want to work to be like. I am glad that we met

them now so that we know what we need to work on.”

Vs. Eureka

Bigfork was able to pull off a victory

during the season home opener Thursday against Eureka.

The Vals picked up a fairly easy 25-16

win in the first game, but the Lady Lions fought back after that.

Bigfork lost the next two games 25-19 and 25-18, respectively,

after spending both games repeatedly tied with their opponent.

“I was very impressed with Eureka’s

game play,” Wicklund said. “They were a scrappy team and they could

hit also.”

In the fourth game, the Vals were able

to stop the cycle and pull away at the end of the game to win

25-16. Bigfork used a short scoring rally at the end of the fifth

game to finish on top 15-11 and take the match win.

“I was proud of how the girls came back

after being down 2-1. We didn’t let down,” Wicklund said. “We were

hitting really well and we matched up with them really well. We

played hard. We had 33 kills. We were swinging at them. I think it

was a great team win.”

Robertson led Bigfork with 12 of its 33

kills and three of the team’s six blocks. Peck was again the

assists leader with 17 of the 23, and she had five of the team’s 17

aces. Wicklund led in digs with 13 of Bigfork’s 55 and aces with

seven.

“It was a fun game for the girls, and I

think it was fun for people to watch too,” Wicklund said.

With the season now in full swing,

Wicklund said she feels good about where her team is at.

“I’m pretty happy with where we’re at,”

Wicklund said. “We can’t be complacent. We definitely have to keep

fighting and pushing through. We can’t look over anyone in 7B.”

The Vals hosted Stillwater Christian on

Tuesday, Sept. 13.

Their next game is Saturday in Thompson

Falls.