It was a long-delayed battle for the top spot in Western 7B volleyball.

And it was another win for the conference’s once-beaten leader, Eureka as they snatched a 3-1 win over home-standing Thompson Falls last Monday night.

In a game that had been rescheduled several times for various reasons, the Lady Lions roared out to a 25-9 first set win to take a 1-0 match lead.

But Thompson Falls quickly showed it was a more than worthy opponent in the battle royale, bouncing back in a high-scoring second set thriller, winning 29-27 and squaring the long anticipated showdown at 1-1.

But as if they have a switch to crank out extra energy when needed, Eureka responded with a 25-11 win in the pivotal set three, putting them ahead 2-1 for the match.

Down but not out, T Falls laced em up and went back to work, forcing the fourth set to the max before Eureka was able to eke out a 25-23 win and clinch the match, 3-1.

The win boosted Eureka to 6-0 in Western 7B play, and 11-1 on the year. Following the loss, T Falls dropped to 8-4 on the year and 6-1 in conference play, still good for second place with the District tournament in Plains rapidly approaching (Oct 27-28).

Kara Stanger had an outstanding game for Eureka, racking up a match best 16 kills and nine digs. Teammate Annie Vaughn had a match best 18 assists for the Lions.

Annalise Fairbank played a good game for Thompson Falls, leading the Lady Hawks in kills with five, one better than junior Sarah Koskela (4). Fairbank also had three assists. That category was led by Olivia Fitchett, who recorded eight assists for the match.

The two teams square off again this Saturday in Eureka, both squads final regular season game before the District tournament begins the following Friday.