Lady Hawks earn first seed for districts

THOMPSON FALLS – The Lady Hawks finished the regular season undefeated and as the number one seed after two victories against Troy and Eureka.

With their heads held high, the ladies will be headed into districts in the number one slot, hopefully giving them an advantage in the tournament.

However, according to Head Coach Sandra Kazmierczak, anything goes in tournament play.

“Like I always say we go back to zero,” said Coach Kazmierczak who explained that districts is always a different kind of ball game. “Every year a team surprises someone.”

Because of that, the Lady Hawks have to remain on their toes and play their best volleyball to ensure success.

“We all know we have to come ready to play our best volleyball this week,” said Coach Kazmierczak.

If the games they play are anything like the games against Troy and Eureka, the girls will be sitting pretty without a worry.

In the game against Troy the ladies swept the team with what seemed to be minimal efforts. The final scores were 25 to 14, 25 to 10 and 25 to 12.

The ladies started off the first set strong, gaining a handful of points right at the get go.

Sophomore Shey Hannum slammed down an ace, stretching the lead to 10 to 3.

Thompson Falls continued their lead without breaking a sweat.

Freshman Autrey Hannum was on fire, giving Troy a very hard time at the net.

With a lead of ten or more points throughout most of the sets, the team moved into the second set keeping a big lead once again. With multiple aces in the set, the Lady Hawks pushed their score further ahead.

The third set started off on a more even note with the team’s sitting at a tie. However, that tie did not last long as Shey put the ladies back on course. With the help of Logan Beckman the ladies continued to advance until the whole team was on board, pulling ahead steadily and taking the win.

Thompson Falls had 27 kills with Shasta Wilson taking nine of them. Shey Hannum had half of the lady’s digs, securing four of the eight. Erica Sorlie and Beckman each brought in eight of the 36 digs. Sorlie also led in assists, bringing in all but two of the team’s total. The Lady Hawks had 17 aces, with Sorlie scoring seven.

“The girls seemed to have a good night for senior night,” said Coach Kazmierczak, describing the game as a good win for the ladies.

Next up was Eureka. At the away game, the ladies swept the team - something that happened for the first time on Eureka’s home turf.

“That’s my first time we ever won in Eureka,” said Coach Kazmierczak.

The ladies ended almost every set ten points ahead with the final scores of 25 to 12, 25 to 14, and 25 to 16.

Shey Hannum and Beckman each had seven kills a piece, adding to the team’s total of 27. Shey also brought in seven of the 11 blocks. Angela Padden led the team in digs, bringing in nine of the 44 while, Sorlie had all but five of the team’s 25 assists. Sorlie once again led in aces, slamming down half of the twelve.

“They are all coming together and they are feeling pretty good about their roles going into tournament,” said Coach Kazmierczak. “They know that at tournament anything can happen.”

She went on to explain that everyone will be at the top of their game.

“We just have to come up and play our best volleyball because everyone else is going to do the same. I’m keeping a pretty open mind and hoping to finish strong,” said Coach Kazmierczak.

The district tournament will be held in Plains on Saturday with the first match kicking off at 10 a.m. The Lady Hawks will play their first game at 1:30 p.m. It is unknown whom they will play yet but it will be between the fourth and fifth seed – Plains or Eureka, depending on who wins the match.

“The kids are ready,” said Coach Kazmierczak.