First-round loss sets up rematch with Kodiak

WASILLA — Before Palmer could get anything going, the Moose found themselves saying “here we go again.”

After a tough loss to one of Alaska’s top teams, Palmer is now set to face an all-too-familiar foe. Cook Inlet Conference champion Dimond swept Palmer 3-0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-14) during the first round of the ASAA/First National Bank 4A State Volleyball Championships at the Curtis D. Menard Memorial Sports Center in Wasilla Thursday.

With the loss, the Moose now meet Kodiak in loser’s bracket action today at 1 p.m. at the Menard. It will be the fifth meeting of the season between the Northern Lights Conference rivals and the third in eight days.

“Honestly, there’s advantages and disadvantages,” Palmer head coach Steve Reynolds said of repeated meetings with an opponent. “You’ve seen them, so you’re familiar with what they do. They’ve seen you, so they’re familiar with what they do. On the flipside, sometimes you get tired of playing the same teams over and over again.”

Led by 6-foot junior Leah Swiss, Dimond used a quick sweep to push Palmer down and move into the second round of the winner’s bracket. Reynolds said Swiss led a group of Lynx hitters who proved to be a tough opponent for the Moose.

“They were giving us fits on defense,” Reynolds said. “They have the ability to go over our block as much as they go around it.”

With that consistent pressure, Dimond was able to carry the momentum.

“They had a lot better success stringing some points together,” Reynolds said. “We had some unforced errors at bad times, and they forced errors too, so it was hard to string many points together.”

Reynolds praised his squad, which includes only two seniors, for its consistent work.

“I can’t fault them for how we played,” Reynolds said. “We were just kind of run over.”

Junior Macey Buresh led the Moose with 20 assists and six digs in the win. Juniors Elliot Perkins and Brecken Riekena, and sophomore Mariah McNamara added seven digs each. Senior Lily Cullers chipped in a dozen digs.

Despite a first-round loss, Palmer can still play for a spot in the state championship match, thanks to the tournament’s new double-elimination format. A team’s first loss drops it into loser’s bracket action. The winner of the loser’s bracket will move into the championship match, slated for Saturday at 6 p.m.

“It’s a little easier to be optimistic,” Reynolds said.

It would be a long road, but it’s a path Palmer has already taken. The Moose suffered a loss to Kodiak in the first round of the NLC tourney in Kodiak last week, but won three straight matches to advance to the championship match. Palmer beat Kodiak to move into the NLC final. The Moose finished the tourney as the conference runner-up.

Each of the NLC’s three teams fell during the first round. NLC champion Soldotna suffered a 3-2 loss to South Anchorage and will play West Valley today at 11 a.m. Juneau-Douglas rallied from a two-game deficit to beat Kodiak 3-2.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com. Find him by searching Valley Sports Huddle on Facebook.