Thornton, Komanec lead Cats to third
LEWISTON - Clark Fork put the finishing touches on another excellent season, beating Mackay 25-23, 27-25, 14-25, 23-25, 15-7 to finish third at the 1A Division II state volleyball tournament on Saturday at Lewiston High.
Seniors Celeste Komanec and Brocklynn Thornton came up big in their final high school match, as Komanec finished with 26 assists, 12 digs and four aces, and Thornton fired 10 kills to go with 12 digs. The Cats (22-5) kept the intensity up from the first point to the last to earn their second state trophy in the past three years.
"They fought through it," Clark Fork coach Michelle Adams said. "They were tired, but got it done. It was pretty exciting."
Junior Mariah Miller stuffed the stat sheet with eight kills, 20 digs and three aces, and Lyndsie Kiebert added six kills and 13 digs as the Cats bounced back after a straight-game loss to Camas County in the semifinals.
Against Camas County, which went on to win its third consecutive state title, the Wampus Cats could never seem to build any momentum, falling 25-13, 25-13, 25-17. Thornton posted seven kills, five digs and two blocks, Komanec 14 assists and three digs, Miller four kills and six digs and Dimi Kailang six digs for the Wampus Cats in defeat.
Adams felt her team knew it was facing the prohibitive favorite, and didn't play up to its potential.
"We played with a lot of heart, but went into it a little bit intimidated," she said. "We just couldn't pull out of that mental bind that we got ourselves in."
The Cats opened the tournament with a 25-10, 25-23, 27-25 sweep of Tri-Valley on Friday, as Thornton had eight kills, Komanec dished out 24 assists, Miller added seven kills and a team-high six aces, and Lyndsie Kiebert had five digs and four kills.
The Cats were able to conquer the first-match jitters that plagued them at state last year, when they went two and out.
Lakeside loses
in consolation final
LEWISTON - The Lakeside Knights fell to the Hagerman Pirates 25-21, 25-16, 25-15 in the consolation championship match of the state 1A Division I tournament at Lewis-Clark State, concluding the season 14-9.
Further details were not available.