Lady Wolves sweep critical second seeding tournament

A number one seed for the Region V tournament is within the grasp of the Wrangell volleyball team after a weekend sweep in Haines.

The Lady Wolves both benefited and suffered from foul weather. High seas and wind kept regional rivals Craig and Metlakatla from attending, but also barred the attendance of two of the volleyball team's starters and the varsity head coach.

The meet led off with an exhibition match against Haines the first day, followed by an evening match up against Skagway.

"There was still the majority of our region there," said Junior Varsity Head Coach Lisa Nikodym. "We did an exhibition the first night. Gave us a little taste of what we were expecting."

The match-up against Skagway was a three-game sweep for the Lady Wolves, which set up a showdown the following afternoon against repeat foil Klawock.

"They've always beat us every time we've played them," Nikodym said. "We were a little unsure of how that was going to go down with two people missing. We obviously took them by five or six points."

Improved enthusiasm and morale contributed to the victory, Nikodym said.

"My seniors really stepped up," she said. "All of the girls were out there talking and moving and having fun. When they are out there and talking and moving, they are 10 times more successful."

The final hurdle on the path to the sweep was Haines, Nikodym said. While Haines managed to take one game of four, the Lady Wolves hung tough to triumph.

"We were just on our offensive game," Nikodym said. "The third game came and we let up a little bit and we shouldn't have. We walked having swept the tournament."

While the Lady Wolves bask in their victory for the next two weeks, they'll wait to see whether their performance was good enough to earn them top seed at the Region V finals in Klawock.

"We're waiting for word from Region V, but we could walk into Region V with a number one seed," she said. "We're still uncertain yet."

And while the top seed would be a pretty feather for the team's cap, it doesn't mean they can rest easy, Nikodym said.

"Craig has always been a rival," she said. "They've been our team to monitor. They're the ones we're focused on."

Overall, serving has drastically improved throughout the seeding tournament, Nikodym said.

"Our serving was probably 200 times better," she said. "I had girls who were serving 10, 15 times in a row. Everybody was cheering, everybody was moving their feet. In any given game, we had people that stood out."

She singled out senior Calleigh Miller - in at libaro last weekend to replace junior Darian Meissner, who was out on an unrelated medical issue - for particular praise.

The seeding tournament's setting posed particular challenges, Nikodym said.

"We went from our climate to Haines's climate which is 20 degrees colder and drier," Nikodym said. "They did a good job with it."

The Lady Wolves will focus on defense heading into regionals, Nikodym said.

"I think the biggest thing we're focusing on is tweaking our defensive," she said. "We know by now where the other girls are hitting, who they're targeting. We're gonna keep the girls working hard until next week."