Lady Scotties Continue Domination on Court

The Lady Scotties showed their endurance, hard work and strength this past week, playing three matches in a five-day time frame. On Tuesday, Oct. 8, they traveled to Fairview to take on the Warriors. This game was a pick-up to the schedule after Scobey cancelled the scheduled meet that was to be held on Oct. 24 due to over-scheduling. Coming into the match, the Warriors were coming off a nine and zero record and were dedicated to keeping that undefeated record. However, the Scotties had the same goal in mind as they were coming into the match with a seven and zero record. After four matches, the Lady Scotties beat out the Warriors, 25-20, 25-18, 28-30, 25-20.

This was the first time the Scotties played Fairview this season, so going into the match the girls didn't know anything about the team and how they play. "The girls kept asking me what do we know, what do we know. I said 'I don't know anything and it doesn't truly matter because when you want to go to other tournaments, you tend not to know a lot about the certain teams. You just have to go out and play and react to the ball and the situation the moment it's happening.' I like the surprise of having no presumptions and hope the girls play good straight up volleyball," stated Coach Somer Hoerster during the KLTZ's Coaches Corner on Oct. 10.

As the score showed during the matches, the Warriors and the Scotties never stopped playing. "They ran a ton of offense, they had hit at us more than we have seen all season. My girls had 100 digs, which has not happened in a long time. It felt like a marathon of a match there with how points were scored," stressed coach Hoerster during the broadcast on Oct. 10. During the match, the Lady Scotties didn't miss a single serve, which is a huge feat for the team. "When you play a close four games, that is A LOT of serving!" coach Hoerster told the Courier.

After adding another win to their belt, they traveled to Poplar on Oct. 10, whom they beat earlier this season. Once again, the Lady Scotties brought their A-Game, winning in three matches, 25-11, 25-7, 25-11. "Poplar has improved a bunch since the beginning of the season. They have a great group of kids that work hard and want to play well it seems," said Hoerster. "My team played well against them and controlled things on our side of the net very well."

Bringing home two wins kept the Lady Scotties on Cloud Nine when they played Harlem on home court during the annual Pink Night. Earlier this season, the Lady Scotties beat the Harlem Wildcats, and up to that point the loss on their record was to the Scotties. "I am not surprised they are second in the conference. They gave us a good run. I couldn't be happier to have the team come for our Pink Night. It's more fun to watch when it's a more competitive match, for sure," said Hoerster on the Coaches Corner broadcast.

A competitive match it was, however once again in four matches, the Lady Scotties beat the Wildcats 25-12, 23-25, 25-19, 25-21. Taylor Pederson led the team with 10 kills of the team's 43, Keely Fossum led the team with the team's total of eight blocks, Riley Noser led the team with five aces, of the team's 17, Tyanna Graham led the team with 14 digs, of the team's 84, and Rachelle Glaser led the team with 32 assists of the team's 34.

"I'm sure they were hungry to beat us. They are definitely used to winning as well. They do a great job of keeping the ball in play and fighting for points on their side," coach Hoerster told the Courier. Throughout the second match, Hoerster called two time outs mainly to try and stall any momentum of the other team. "I try really hard to not call time outs because I want the girls to know that I have faith in them working through playing from behind in points sometimes. That's the great thing about this group. Several times during this season, we have been behind anywhere from three to six points and I don't call timeouts because I believe in their ability to fight through it and compete," said Hoerster.

In addition to the battle on the court, the crowds also battled it out on who could be the loudest and provide the most support. There were times throughout each match where the Scottie cheerleaders would pump up the team, and the Wildcat fans, led by what appeared to be Wildcat student, would battle back. There was even a point in time where the Wildcats fans faced off with the Scottie fans, going head-to-head, battling it out with cheers and volume. "The girls LOVE to play with our crowd and prefer the noise. It pumps them up and in general no one likes to play volleyball in a quiet gym. The noise is a boost and we appreciate all of the fan interaction. We hope for large turnouts for our Senior Night and for our District Tournament, which is hosted here," stated Hoerster.

In addition to good volleyball, the team, the fans and the community came out for a good cause. Final totals raised were not finalized as of press time, however coach Hoerster expects to top $2,000. Last year the funds raised went to the mammogram fund at the FMDH Foundation and this year the funds raised will go to a local volleyball parent who is currently battling cancer.

As the team looks ahead to the last few weeks of conference play, the Lady Scotties will host Plentywood on Oct. 16 after honoring volleyball, cross country and cheer seniors. They then will travel to Malta on Oct. 24 and Wolf Point on Oct. 26 before battling it out in Districts on Nov. 1 through 2.