Document text
57 °F Forecast | Road Cams Saturday, March 26, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 13, 2004 Ashland blows past North Medford By JOE ZAVALA for the Mail Tribune ASHLAND — Ashland found inspiration in a mountain, then erupted in a blast not even ninth-ranked North Medford could escape. "You know how Mount St. Helens blew," Grizzly junior setter Lindsey Stone said. "Well, last week in practice, (assistant coach) Cecily (Verloop) said, ‘We’ve been rumbling, we’ve been spitting a little bit, but now it’s time to explode.’" And what a boom it was. Ashland attacked with precision, capped each game with a flurry and feasted on North Medford’s serving woes in a resounding, 25-19, 25-19, 25-10 Southern Oregon Conference romp Tuesday at Mountain Avenue Gym. The win gave the Grizzlies a boost in the SOC playoff race and hurt North’s bid for a league title. Ashland improved to 7-4 in league play, while North fell to 9-2. Each team has three SOC matches left. The Grizzlies ended up with 31 kills, including a match-high 13 by outside hitter Jessica Walters in 26 attempts. Sarah Holgen added eight kills and a team-high 10 digs, while Stone spread the ball around to five different hitters and ended up with 28 assists. Advertisement When asked if it was his team’s best performance of the season, Ashland head coach Josh Rohlfing didn’t hesitate. "Oh, by far," he said. "Bar none for me, as far as watching and seeing them carry out what our game plan is. We carried out our game plan earlier in the year — against South Medford — and that was a pretty good match for us, but this is by far the most complete match we’ve played." It was exactly the opposite for the visitors. With a large — and loud — Grizzly fan base on hand roaring its approval, the Black Tornado struggled mightily behind the service stripe, had trouble passing in Game 3 and were never quite in sync. North committed eight serving errors, including three in the final game, when things quickly got out of hand. Black Tornado sophomore hitter Lauren Berger delivered a kill to make it 5-all early in Game 3, but her service miscue moments later ignited a 16-3 Ashland rally that put the match away. "We did start out really well in the beginning, and then, honestly, I don’t know what to say," said North Medford setter Allanah Munson, who led the Black Tornado in both kills (six) and assists (15). "From here, we just know we’re going to have to work hard. This has no bearing on what’s going to happen with the conference. If we come out and just respond from this and just take it to another level, we can only learn from here." North lived up to its lofty ranking in the early going. The Black Tornado used sound passing and a solid attack to take leads of 8-4 and 13-8 in Game 1. Jessie Sarver and Kylie Schwarm each came up with big kills in the run. It didn’t last. Two blocks by Thivierge — she tied Stone with a team-high four stuffs — and a kill by Holgen helped the Grizzlies go on a six-point spurt that gave them an 18-15 lead. Later, Holgen fired a laser down the line that gave the Grizzlies a 21-18 lead. The play sparked a 5-1 game-clinching run for the Grizzlies, who ended it on Stone’s perfectly placed tip kill. The SOC rivals may have produced the same score in Game 2, but this time no Grizzly comeback was required. Ashland won the first two points and forced North to play catch-up the rest of the way. The Black Tornado stayed within two or three points until Ashland again took command in the late going. Walters had three kills down the stretch to help the Grizzlies take six of the game’s last eight points. "We just wanted it so bad," Holgen said. "You could just feel it all day building up, and then when you come to the game, losing is not even a question. "We just took it to them this game." Joe Zavala is sports editor of the Ashland Daily Tidings. Reach him at 482-3456. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Advertisement s