Scott City spikers look to change sectional luck vs. Caruthersville

The Rams hope to break through on their fourth attempt.

By JEREMY JOFFRAY

Southeast Missourian

The Scott City volleyball program has figured out the district tournament, winning three straight titles and four in five years.

The Rams have not had any luck once they've made their way past the district tournament, losing in two games in the sectional round on all three occasions.

In order to end that trend, the Rams (23-7-4) will have to find a way to get by Caruthersville (14-9-2) today. Scott City will face the Tigers at 3 p.m. at Bloomfield, and St. Vincent will face Crystal City (24-6) in the other sectional at Bloomfield at 4:30 p.m. today.

Last year, the Rams lost a 25-16, 25-15 match to Crystal City, which went on to finish fourth in Class 2.

"I hope we can go down there, play well and go out with some confidence," Scott City coach Carl Ritter Jr. said. "If we win that will be great, but if we don't hopefully we can walk out with our heads held high."

Scott City had few problems with Twin Rivers in the district tournament, sweeping the Royals 25-18, 25-13. Senior Jenni Heisserer led the Rams with nine kills in the match as Scott City put Twin Rivers on the defensive.

Ritter said he thought his team did too much tipping at times and not hitting, something which cannot happen today.

"If we don't go into Saturday with the mindset of hitting the ball and playing aggressive offensively, then we'll be the ones playing defense," Ritter said.

Heisserer and setter Kacie Ritter provide senior leadership for the Rams on the floor. Nearly all of the Rams' regulars played in the sectional last year other than freshman Brooke Simpson.

"The kids are excited. They've worked hard," Carl Ritter said. "They deserve to go and hopefully they can continue on."

St. Vincent is making its second straight trip to the Class 2 sectional. The Squaws (28-6-2) swept Woodland in the district finals to earn their trip to Bloomfield. Last year, St. Vincent was swept by Caruthersville in two tight games.

Cubs seek state again

In Class 1, Bell City has a shot to earn its second straight trip to the state final four and third in four years. The Cubs (32-1) will face Holcomb (21-6-3) at 3 p.m. at Bell City in the sectional round.

Bell City finished third in Class 1 last year, and brought home the state title in 2003. The Cubs, who lost just one starter from last year's team, won the school's first B.A. Sports Volleyball Classic title earlier this season.

"We're trying to stay focused on the fact it doesn't matter who we play," Bell City coach Erin Hoffman said following Bell City's district title win. "We just want to be fundamentally sound and play good volleyball. The girls are really smart and they figure out the defense and where the holes are. We control our own destiny."

Leopold (26-3) will face Bismarck (29-4-2) in the other sectional at Bell City. The Wildcats fell to Bell City in the quarterfinals last year. Bismarck, which lost to Bell City in the B.A. Sports Volleyball Classic in three games, moved down from Class 2 this season.

Bulldogs alive in Class 3

Notre Dame won the Class 3 District 1 title as the No. 3 seed by upsetting host Dexter in finals. The Bulldogs (20-10) trailed in the decisive third game -- Dexter made its way to 20 points first -- before rallying for a 25-22 game-three win.

"It was a pretty intense game, pretty exciting," Notre Dame coach Tara Stroup said.

The Bulldogs will face Festus (27-4-6) at 3 p.m. today in the Class 3 sectional at De Soto. St. Francis Borgia (31-3) will face Lutheran South (24-10-2) at 4:30 in the other sectional.

Notre Dame actually helped turn its season around at Festus late in the season. The Bulldogs used a strong showing at the Festus Invitational Oct. 14 as a spark to win seven of their final eight matches, including the district tournament.

"Since we went to the tournament in Festus we've been rolling pretty good," Stroup said.