Eagle Volleyball takes home opener

By Reggie Stiteler
Published: Wednesday, October 10, 2007 2:30 PM CDT
Mt. Shasta News

Courtney Barlow splits the defense with this game three kill against Feather River. Barlow led the Eagles with 15 kills last Friday.

Tasting victory in a 13-13 game four tie, her volleyball squad up 2-1 in need of a win to close out the match against a resilient Feather River group, College of the Siskiyous' Crislyn Chewning crashed into her team's bench to make a play on a stray ball.

The point went to the visiting Golden Eagles, but such an attempt symbolized the effort put forth by the Siskiyou Eagles in their 3-1 come-from-behind victory Friday evening.

“We were a little pumped up,” coach Tom Powers understates of his team's effort. “We did a good job of getting to enough balls to keep the volleys alive.”

In an evenly matched battle of two well-rehearsed volleyball squads in their first conference match of the season, the Eagles (12-2 overall; 1-0 in conference) dug themselves out of a 1-0 match deficit after losing a tight opening game 32-30.

An impressively balanced Eagle attack across the match held off Feather River 30-26 in game two. Powers expected a tough battle and that's exactly where his girls found themselves, knotted at one game a piece going into game three.

Storming out of the gate Jennifer Mendenhall started off game three's scoring with one of her team-high 8 blocks before Chewning served the Eagles to a 5-0 lead. They stretched the lead to 8-1 before the Golden Eagles took a time out.

Looking confident behind some bullet serves by Courtney Barlow and company, COS seemed to daze the visitors with a 30-15 victory to take a 2-1 match lead.

But game four was as back and forth as a game gets, with no less than 10 tie scores and neither team enjoying more than a two point cushion until a Barlow spike gave the Eagles a 27-24 advantage late in the match.

Feather River, who before Friday night had only lost one game on the season, left everything on the court. With the Siskiyous holding a 29-26 match point lead, a Golden Eagle slammed into to the scorer's table saving a mis-hit ball back to her team, but a carry was whistled before the Eagles celebrated their thrilling 30-26 game four and 3-1 match victory.

Barlow led the Eagles with a team high 15 kills. Mendenhall added 12 kills and a team high 9 blocks, with Chewning adding another 12 kills of her own. Stephanie Batchelder's contributed 46 assists across the match.

“We needed to really win at home, win early, before we go on the road for five straight,” Powers said,

The Eagles host Lassen tonight and Shasta on Friday, but will not return home until Nov. 7 against Redwoods.

“So long as we stay focused we should do fine,” Powers predicts. “Friday versus Shasta, who is in the top 15 in the North, is always a big game. Hopefully we can keep up our intensity.”