After dropping the opening game at home Wednesday night, Littlefork-Big Falls’ volleyball team won three straight to defeat Mountain Iron-Buhl in a Section 7A tournament match, 16-25, 25-11, 25-20, 26-24.
The match victory marked the second time in two weeks the Vikings, seeded No. 2 in their Subsection, downed the No. 7-seeded Rangers after having swept MI-B in three straight games on Oct. 11 in the L-BF gym.
“I knew they were a better team than we saw in the regular season,” said Vikings head coach Sarah Bradley. “I was not surprised that they came out and played a better game than we had seen earlier.”
In game one, the Rangers’ blocking at the net limited L-BF in being able to score by spiking the ball. MI-B led early and remained in control throughout the game before winning by nine.
Game two stayed close early before the Vikings turned a 10-9 lead into a rout by going on a 15-2 scoring run.
“I think the girls — each individual — stepped it up a little bit, and they started doing things a little bit crisper and a little bit cleaner,” Bradley said.
The Vikings’ momentum continued into the start of the third game when L-BF opened up a 10-1 lead. However, MI-B got back on track and tied the game at 18-18, before the Vikings regrouped after a timeout and won by five.
After a 3-3 tie in game four, L-BF fell behind by as much as six points with the Rangers holding the lead for most of the game before the Vikings tied it at 21-21.
Game four deadlocked three more times before L-BF won by two and also picked up the match victory.
“I have a group of girls that are mentally tough,” Bradley said. “When it comes down to those last few points — we’ve worked a lot on it, we’ve seen it in the past — I believe now that they know what it takes to win those close games. I’m confident when it comes down to that type of a match.”
Three Viking players ended up with double-digit kills. Brooke Millerbernd recorded 15 kills and 16 digs. Abby Thompson had 13 kills and three blocks. DyAna Imhof added 11 kills and six blocks.
Other statistical leaders for L-BF included: Breann Larson, 21 digs; and Courtney Pfeifer, six aces, three kills and 16 digs.
The Vikings also won Friday night’s Section 7A quarterfinal match in Proctor against Cherry, 25-16, 14-25, 25-23, 12-25, 17-15. More details of L-BF’s match with Cherry will be published in the Oct. 31 edition of The Journal.
The Vikings' next opponent is Carlton in the Section 7A semifinal match at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Virginia.
