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Gresham tops North in semifinals BEND � The third-ranked North Medford volleyball team cruised through pool play before losing to second-ranked Gresham in the semifinals at the Clearwater Classic Saturday. The Black Tornado took out Southern Oregon Conference foe Grants Pass in the first match of the day, 15-1, 15-5, and followed up with a 15-9, 15-6 pasting of Mt. View. In the third pool play game of the day, North Medford ran into fifth-ranked Centennial, dropping Game 1, 13-15, then bouncing back for a win in Game 2, 15-13. The split left the Black Tornado with the top seed heading into the playoffs. After an easy 15-3, 15-3 decision over Wilson and a 15-1, 15-6 win over host team Bend, North Medford met up with Gresham in the semifinals. After getting trounced in the first game, 15-3, the Black Tornado fought back but couldn�t come away with a win, losing, 15-13. Chaley Higgins led North in the quarterfinal win over Bend with seven kills and five blocks while Jill Carrigan added six kills. In the semifinal game, Kendra Mitchell paved the way for the Black Tornado with eight kills, while Carrigan added four. North Medford improved to 18-2 overall and remain 10-0 in SOC play. ST. MARY�S SPLITS � At Gold Beach, St. Mary�s, playing with only eight players and missing three starters, battled back to take the second match, 5-15, 15-13, 15-9. Gold Beach took the first match, 16-14, 15-8. Melissa Anderson served the Crusaders back from a 6-0 deficit in the final game to tie things up, and Kristina Easton eventually served out the win. Sophomore Melissa Anderson had 42 assists and 16 digs on the day to lead the Crusaders while Kathryn Zielony had 30 digs. Kristin Zielony added 24 digs and 15 kills while Christina Vaninetti had 14 kills and five blocks. Teammate Kristina Easton added 17 digs. St. Mary�s improved to 18-4 overall on the season. BUTTE FALLS WINS TOURNEY � At Days Creek, Butte Falls fought back from a 14-8 deficit in the deciding Game 3 to win the title at the eight-team Days Creek Tournament. The Loggers took out Camas Valley, 13-15, 15-12, 16-14 in the title game after going undefeated in pool play and beating Glendale in two games leading up to the finale. Junior Jessica Dunlap led Butte Falls, who went 10-1 in the tournament, with 44 assists on the day, while senior Elizabeth McLauchlan had 12 aces to go along with a 41 of 82 kills effort. Freshman Asia Million had 18 digs to lead the Loggers (9-3, 7-0 Skyline A Southern Division). Butte Falls travels to take on Paisley on Friday. The two teams are currently tied for the lead in conference play. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.