Libby spikes Whitefish in five

The Lady Bulldogs volleyball squad dropped a close conference game at Libby on Oct. 10 — losing the final two sets, 3-2, after taking a 2-1 lead.

"We came out strong," coach Jackie Fuller said. "We played some good defense, but we couldn't get over the hump in the final game. We made too many unforced errors."

Fuller said the Lady 'Dogs have been tightening up under pressure situations and making mental mistakes down the stretch on close games.

"We aren't playing to win," she said.

Fuller said she was impressed by the leadership Jessica Slaybaugh showed against Libby and noted Olivia Nagler's tremendous aptitude for chasing down loose balls.

"She goes after every ball as if it was her last," Fuller said of Nagler.

The loss pushed Whitefish to third in the conference, behind Polson and Libby. The Lady Bulldogs will likely have the third seed going into the divisional tournament in November. The top-two teams from the tournament go on to the state Class A playoffs.

The Lady Bulldogs now face a long stretch of non-conference games, starting with a doubleheader on Thursday against Corvallis and Hamilton.

"We have a huge day on Thursday," Fuller said. "It's going to be a good tune-up for divisionals.

"It's going to be a great night of volleyball. Everyone needs to come out and support us."

Fuller said the doubleheader should offer a good chance to work on the team's offense and getting the middle hitters more active. Defensively, she wants to see the team move their feet more.

The volleyball action starts at 10 a.m. against Corvallis. The second half of the twin bill starts at 4:15 p.m.

On a scheduling note, the final game of the regular season against Stevensville has been moved to Oct. 31 and will start at 2 p.m.