Lady Bulldogs prepare for divisional tourney
Daniel McKay photos / Whitefish Pilot Senior Mirielle Kruger led Whitefish in kills with 13 against Frenchtown Saturday.
Junior Cailyn Ross rises for a kill against Frenchtown.
Whitefish’s senior players were honored at Saturday’s match. Seniors include: Murielle Kruger, Amara McDaniel (manager), Kate Doorn, Savannah Krause (manager), Nina Thew and Hannah Freudenberger (manager).
The Lady Bulldog volleyball team wrapped up their regular season schedule on Saturday, beating conference opponent Frenchtown 3-1 after sweeping Stevensville the night before.
After dropping the first set, Frenchtown came back with plenty of energy to win the second set and even the score. Whitefish won a nailbiter in the third set and took the final set for the 25-19, 19-25, 26-24, 25-17 win.
Mirielle Kruger led Whitefish with 13 kills and two blocks. Libby Nagler racked up 32 assists and Serena Hemingson had 16 digs.
“The girls really stepped up to produce in that game when it was an emotional senior night,” head coach Jackie Fuller said. “They dug in and knew what they needed to do and we came out successful.”
Fuller praised Frenchtown and said she wasn’t surprised to see them come back with a vengeance for a win in the second set.
“I knew what Frenchtown has, and I give them all the credit in the world. They’re a good ball club. I knew we were going to have our hands full all night,” she said.
On Thursday Whitefish begins the Northwest A divisional tournament in Columbia Falls as the number two seed in the northwest bracket. The Lady Dogs face Butte Central, the number three seed from the southwest, at noon. Butte Central finished 8-6 for third place in Southwest A conference play.
Fuller said that while her team has played Butte in tournament play before, those shortened matches don’t give a good indication of what Whitefish will face on Thursday. However, Fuller said the team knows they’ll need to be firing on all cylinders to advance in the tournament.
“They’re a real scrappy team, they won’t give up on the ball so we’ve got to be prepared for it to come over at any time,” she said. “We’re going to have to step up and be at our best.”
Whitefish 3, Frenchtown 1
Kills — Frenchtown 30 (Alivia Williams 9), Whitefish 38 (Mirielle Kruger 13); Blocks — Frenchtown 12 (Williams 4), Whitefish 4 (Kruger 2); Assists — Frenchtown 24 (Kylie Willet 13), Whitefish 36 (Libby Nagler 32); Digs — Frenchtown 51 (Maddy Boller 15), Whitefish 55 (Serena Hemmingson 16); Aces —Frenchtown 3 (Lexi Statlen 2), Whitefish 9 (Annisa Brown 4).