Polson volleyball rallies past Columbia Falls for four-set conference victory
BRANDON HANSEN for the Leader | Lake County Leader | UPDATED 1 hour AGO
The Polson Lady Pirates overcame an opening-set loss to defeat Columbia Falls 3-1 in a Northwestern A Conference showdown on Oct. 15. Polson dropped the first set 20-25 before responding with three consecutive victories, 25-20, 25-19 and 25-22, to improve to 20-4-1 on the season.
The victory came against a Columbia Falls squad that entered the matchup with a strong record of its own, as the Wildcats stood at 21-8-1 following the defeat.
Junior Eliza Todd and senior McKenna Corley led Polson's offense with 12 kills apiece, accounting for more than half of the team's 46 kills.
Todd delivered an especially efficient performance, converting 12 of her 30 attacking attempts into kills while committing just two errors for a .333 hitting percentage. She also recorded five total blocks, including three solo blocks, and contributed two service aces.
Corley matched Todd's team-high 12 kills on 46 attempts while adding four total blocks, including three solo stops.
Junior Logan McCrea provided another offensive weapon, finishing with nine kills on 30 attacks. Junior Embree Bird added eight kills on 20 attempts, giving Polson four players with at least eight kills.
The Lady Pirates also received contributions from Kendyl Jaeger, Mariah D'Beaupre and Ryelee Taylor-Jefferson, who combined for five additional kills.
Senior setter Ryelee Taylor-Jefferson directed Polson's offense, dishing out a team-high 27 assists. Jaeger added 13 assists, helping the Lady Pirates finish with 44 as a team.
Defensively, senior Aleysia Black anchored the back row with a match-high 21 digs, giving Polson crucial opportunities to extend rallies and transition into its offense.
McCrea added 15 digs, while junior Anniston Flynn contributed 13. Bird chipped in six digs as the Lady Pirates combined for 65 digs in the victory.
Polson also found success from the service line, recording nine aces. Flynn led the charge with four aces, while Black and Todd each recorded two.