Trotters take down St. Regis in volleyball action

By CHUCK BANDEL

Valley Press

See-saw games in a see-saw match that was settled by untimely miscues in game four.

That was the story of the Plains Trotters versus St. Regis Lady Tigers Thursday night in St. Regis.

In the end those miscues proved to be the decider as the Trotters came away with a thrilling 3-1 victory over the host Lady Tigers before an energized, vocal crowd.

Plains grabbed a 25-20 win in the opening game, but not before holding off a rally by the Lady Tigers that trimmed a once large lead to 22-20. The Trotters were able to shut off a St. Regis comeback bid by scoring three straight points to take a 1-0 match lead.

The second game was pretty much all Plains, which erased a 14-14 tie early on and cruised to a 25-14 win and a 2-0 match lead. During the second game, a series of off the mark and net serves by the Lady Tigers played a key role in allowing the Trotters to roll off 11 straight points.

With a taller front line on the court and a hold on the service errors, St. Regis jumped to a quick 4-1 lead in game three. They extended that advantage to 11-5 behind solid serves from their lone senior, Grace King and better digging on returned serves.

That lead grew to 22-14 before the Trotters mounted a spirited comeback to pull within 23-17 but St. Regis was not to be denied and held on for a 25-19 game three win, capped by a block from King.

The fourth game of the night, with Plains holding a 2-1 match advantage was a nail-biter from start to finish. With strong digging and setting from Trotter junior Izzy Butcher and senior Dacia Black, Plains raced to a 6-1 lead early in the game.

But St. Regis fought back behind several laser serves from sophomore Macy Hill to eventually tie the game at 10. The lead changed hands eight times during game four. With the crucial game tied at 19-all, St. Regis reeled off five straight points to take a 24-19 lead, one point away from tying the match at two games each.

However, behind the powerful serves of Lexa Craft Plains rallied to tie the game at 24-24. The Trotters won the final two points of the game to wrap up a 3-1 match.

St. Regis returned to action Saturday at Charlo while Plains next game is Tuesday on the road at Hot Springs, which opened the year with a pair of victories last week.