Lady Raiders defeat Medical Lake

At the season-opening Davenport Tourney, the Lady Raiders came away with a match victory against the 1A Medical Lake Cardinals, 25-21 and 25-22.

“It was great to get a win against Medical Lake,” Head Coach Nathan Piturachsatit said, noting he saw many good things happen in the win.

“They didn’t let the previous games get to them, I’m proud of them for that.”

The Lady Raiders had played the University High School JV for the opening match of the day. Against U-High the Lady Raiders came up short, losing both games, 25-17 and 25-19.

The Lady Raiders were lead by the play of seniors Hailey Chaney, Danielle Laramie, and Tanecia Stanczak.

“Hailey Chaney led the team well as our one setter,” Piturachsatit said. “She was able to take control of the offense and provide leadership that the other girls feed off of. Danielle Laramie and Tanecia Stanczak scored many points for us on offense as well as defense. They are two players who are going to be really fun to watch.”

After Medical Lake, the Lady Raiders came up against the Odessa-Harrington Titans, who took seventh place at last year’s 1B State Tournament. The Titans showed why they are perennially successful, defeating the Lady Raiders 25-15 and 25-9.

That kind of play can also reveal players’ abilities under pressure.

“Ashley Lezard has shown skill in practice,” noted the coach, “but I wasn’t sure how she would perform under pressure. She shined. Her swing looked really good and was able to score some points for us.”

The Lady Raiders look to continue improving this week as they traveled to White Swan yesterday for a 5:30 p.m. match against the Cougars. White Swan won two of the three matches last season, including the District play-in game.

Tomorrow, the Lady Raiders travel to Waterville to begin North Central League play against the Shockers. Match play begins at 5 p.m.