SPORTS

CMR volleyball experiences ‘highs and lows’ as season begins

Grady Higgins

It was a bit of a rough start to the 2015 season for the C.M. Russell girls’ volleyball squad, as the Rustlers dropped two matches in straight sets on Saturday afternoon at Swarthout Fieldhouse.

CMR head coach Theresa Besich said that although it wasn’t the ideal start to the season, there were a lot of things that she saw that her team can build on moving forward.

“What I saw this weekend was a lot of highs and a lot of lows,” Besich said. “So at this point I think we are going to have to go back to the drawing board with a few things that I hope we can get corrected early on.”

She added that although she was pleased with her team’s effort, she feels that the team chemistry is something that needs to be improved, but that isn’t something that comes overnight.

“I think we can improve on our trust in each other and just our flow as a team is something we need to work on as well,” she said. “I did think our girls went out and competed very nicely, which is always good to see. It’s just a matter of getting into a rhythm and unfortunately we just couldn’t find that today.”

CMR struggled mightily in the opening match against Kalispell Glacier High in terms of putting points on the board, as they fell to the Wolfpack in straight sets 25-10, 25-13 and 25-15.

Senior hitter Katia Michelotti led the way for the Rustlers in the opening match with five kills, with junior Lindsey Anderson chipping in with six assists and seven digs.

Junior middle hitter Nikki Kruger topped the Wolfpack with 13 kills and specialist Abby Schrade added 29 assists.

Besich said she felt the biggest problem against Glacier was her team didn’t learn from its mistakes.

“We made a few errors and we just got down on ourselves instead of using it as a motivator,” Besich said.

The second and final game of the day would see the Rustlers start strong in the first set before losing steam in the final two frames.

Both teams made strong runs in the first set, with momentum shifting sides almost minute to minute. However, Flathead was able to put away the Rustlers 25-21.

The final two sets didn’t go as well for CMR, as Flathead seized command in both with wins of 25-16 and 25-7, knocking out the Rustlers in straight sets.

Michelotti again paced the Rustlers with five kills and junior Zuzu Rudio tallied eight assists.

Junior Tiana Johnson notched 10 kills for Flathead and senior specialist Xio Lopp put up 21 assists.

Besich said that in order to avoid results similar to Saturday’s matches, the squad as a whole needs to work on its composure, which, again, takes time.

“I think we need to work on our confidence and start to focus on moving together as a team,” she said. “And that’s something that comes hopefully more and more as the season goes and we get more reps.”

CMR’s next match will be on Tuesday when they are pitted against Missoula Big Sky in Missoula before coming home on September 5 against Missoula Sentinel.

Glacier def. CMR 25-10, 25-13, 25-15

Glacier leaders – Kills 39 (Nikki Krueger 13); assists 32 (Abby Schrade 29); aces 7 (Brietta Russell 3); digs 32 (Hailee Bennett); blocks 6 (Nikki Krueger 3).

CMR leaders – Kills 12 (Katie Michelotti 5); assists 7 (Lindsey Anderson 6); aces 1 (Madi Skawinski 1); digs 38 (Lindsey Anderson 7, Kierstin Evenson 7); blocks 3 (Myla Robbins 2, Gabriella Hagen 2).

Flathead def. CMR 25-21, 26-16, 25-7

Flathead leaders – Kills 33 (Tiana Johnson 10); assists 23 (Xio Lopp 21); aces 6 (Jourdon Schultz 5); digs 74 (Lizzie Sherwood 23); blocks 6 (Tiana Johnson 2, Alyssa Wisher 2).

CMR leaders – Kills 20 (Michelotti 5); assists 16 (Zuzu Rudio 8); aces 5 (Gia Fischer 2); digs 38; blocks 8 (Trisha Carlson 2, Kaylee Beer 2, Michelotti 2, Hagen 2).