Pirates 1-1 in five-set matches

The Gilman Pirates went the distance in back-to-back volleyball matches, getting their first Eastern Cloverbelt Conference win of 2021 Tuesday and falling in a well-played match Thursday at Prentice.

The conference win Tuesday was a 3-2 nailbiter over the visiting Colby Hornets and evened both teams’ league records at 1-1. The Pirates broke a five-match losing skid and improved to 4-7 overall.

It also was the second straight match of improved play, according to head coach Janice Komanec, after the team had hit a rough patch in early September.

“Discipline is what we are talking about now,” Komanec said. “When we are disciplined in our responsibilities we can compete at a high level. The other team may still get points, but then they have to earn them rather than us giving them to teams.”

The Pirates hung in mentally when it counted Tuesday in a back-and-forth match with the Hornets, who are building with a fairly inexperienced and improving squad this fall. Gilman emerged victorious in a close first set 25-23 and then dropped the second one 25-20. Gilman again got a tight one in set three by a score of 25-23. Colby extended the match by rallying for a 2519 win in set four.

The Pirates surged ahead in the decisive game five and won it 15-11.

Offensively, Gracie Tallier led Gilman with 11 kills, Ava Gunderson had 10 and Tatum Weir had nine. Tallier and Abby Chaplinski both served three aces, while Emma Grunseth had two. Chaplinski had 36 assists.

On the defensive side of the net, Weir had three block kills, Gunderson had two and Hannah Vick and Grunseth had one each. Ellie Drier had 30 digs, while Tallier had 18 and Chaplinski had 14.

“When we stay disciplined in our responsibilities on the court, like being ready in our defensive positions, transitioning from defense to offense and getting back quickly to hit, going up for the double block in the middle, we make good things happen,” Komanec said.

The Pirates will look to keep their strong play going tonight, Thursday, when they host the Spencer Rockets in Eastern Cloverbelt play. Gilman will get tested Saturday when they return to the nine-team Medford Invitational, which starts at 9 a.m. at Medford Area Middle School. Gilman will open in a pool with the host Raiders and Bloomer.

The Pirates travel to Owen-Withee Tuesday and host Neillsville Sept. 30 in conference matches that start at 7:15 p.m.

Prentice 3, Gilman 2

The Pirates didn’t come away with a win, but they did take a big step in the right direction Thursday in a thrilling five-set non-conference loss at Prentice.

Coming off what they felt were two subpar performances against Columbus Catholic and Abbotsford, Komanec said the Pirates did a much better job of not giving away points with mistakes.

The first three sets were about as close as they could get.

In the opener, Kya Dietzler drilled a handful of hard-to-handle serves, including a couple of aces to give the Pirates a quick 6-0 lead. Gracie went on a brief hitting spree with three kills put Gilman ahead 14-10, but the Buccaneers quickly closed the gap to 16-15, capping that minirun with a Carissa Harding block. Weir got two points at the net to help Gilman open up a 22-18 lead, Prentice answered with four straight points, Weir got a key block to break the tie and the Pirates eventually held on for a 26-24 win.

Prentice’s standout freshman hitter Kali Heikkinen used a trio of kills and an ace to spur her team to a 13-9 lead in game two. Gilman stormed back, taking a 17-15 lead following a kill from Grunseth and a tip off a free ball from Gunderson. Kyla Murphy’s kill gave Prentice game point at 24-21. The Pirates tied it with a block from Weir, and two kills from Tallier, but a long serve and a winner by Mallory Burcaw off a Gilman block allowed Prentice to even the match with a 26-24 win.

A five-point serving run by Chaplinski pushed Gilman to a 16-9 game-three lead and Vick’s kill made it 18-12, but Prentice inched its way back into it and eventually tied it at 23-23 on a Heikkinen kill. The Pirates fought off game point and then got its own game point at 25-24 when Weir and Claire Drier teamed up for a big block at the net. Weir’s push at the net put Gilman ahead 26-25, but Heikkinen got a tip and a kill and Murphy’s kill clinched a pivotal 28-26 win for Prentice.

Prentice jumped ahead 10-6 in game four, but the Pirates didn’t quit and, behind a serving run by Grunseth that included two aces, took a 14-13 lead. Weir got two blocks and Chaplinski served an ace as the Pirates surged ahead 21-15. The Bucs got within 22-20, but a Weir kill and Grunseth’s kill off a Vick assist helped close out a 25-20 win that send the match to game five.

Tallier got a kill, Gunderson’s tip ended a long rally and Tallier’s ace off the net highlighted an opening 5-1 run for the Pirates. Prentice scored the next four, Tallier scored from the back row to make it 6-5, Chaplinski’s ace made it 8-8 and a Prentice error and another Chaplinski ace put Gilman up 10-8. The Buccaneers then went on a 7-0 run to finally end it, highlighted by the 22nd point of the set. Libero Leah Nehls made two amazing diving saves to keep the rally alive, which eventually ended on a Gilman error.

Tallier had 15 kills, followed by Grunseth with nine, Gunderson with seven and Weir with six. Chaplinski set the hitters up with 32 assists. Dietzler had five aces, Tallier and Chaplinski had four each and Grunseth had two.

Weir made things difficult for the Bucs at the net with eight block kills. Grunseth had four, while Claire Drier, Vick and Gunderson had two each. Ellie Drier led the Pirates with 33 digs. Tallier had 25 and Kayleigh James had 10.

Burcaw had 18 kills and Heikkinen had 13 for Prentice. Harding had six block kills for the Buccaneers.