EVERSON — The Nooksack Valley Pioneers volleyball team aced the Blaine Borderites 3-1 (25-11, 25-18, 21-25, 25-20) Monday, Sept. 23 at Nooksack Valley High.
“That is a great team with some great weapons,” Nooksack Valley coach Holly Ste. Marie said about Blaine. “I thought we were well-composed and had great energy and routines. We had some craziness in the middle, but in the fourth, we got our heads on straight.”
Nooksack Valley’s setter Payton Bartl and middle/outside hitter Elizabeth De Lange were a dominant duo in the matchup. Bartl set up De Lange for 15 kills, while De Lange also had three blocks and an ace.
Gallery: Nooksack Valley volleyball rolls past Blaine
“We work really hard in practice because we are really good friends and that bond continues to grow,” De Lange said. “We trust each other so much.”
De Lange had two kills and two blocks in the first set. Blaine took an early 8-5 lead in the first set with a couple of kills from Teia Dube. However, Nooksack Valley took an 11-10 lead and never looked back. The Pioneers scored 12 straight points, including five of Avery Juergens’ seven total aces.
In the second set, Dube tallied five more kills and a block, but the Borderites never led. Nooksack Valley took a 7-3 lead from a pair of kills and an ace from Annie Stremler. The Pioneers held a 22-12 lead but nearly blew the end of the set when Blaine scored five straight points. During that span, three separate Borderites picked up a kill.
Nooksack Valley looked on the verge of sweeping Blaine halfway through the third set.
“In the first two sets, we had a lot of trust and communication,” De Lange said. “I felt like we stooped to their level, but once we got on our runs, it was a good game.”
Blaine held its first lead since the first set when they took a 15-14 advantage in the third set. Dube led the Borderites with five kills and a block in the set. Both teams also got sloppy at the end, totaling 10 errors on the last 15 points.
Blaine held a tight lead throughout most of the third set, yet the Pioneers made a final push and took over at 17-16. After a handful of errors from the Borderites, the Pioneers were leading 24-20. Blaine set up their offense but the kill attempt went wide left and the Pioneers secured the victory.
Ste. Marie believes Nooksack (2-2) is on a good trajectory. “We are trying to find rituals and routines. We have great leadership and we are finding our rhythm,“ she said.
The Pioneers will play 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26 at Lynden Christian, while Blaine (0-4) will travel to Sedro-Woolley for a 7 p.m. match Wednesday, Sept. 25.
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
