Lakeland pulls off an upset

| October 18, 2004 9:00 PM

SANDPOINT — 4A newcomer Lakeland surprised two-time defending state champion Sandpoint 25-20, 17-25, 25-17, 26-24 in the first round of the 4A Region 1 volleyball tournament Monday night.

"This is a big win for us," Lakeland coach Claudia Ebel said. "Sandpoint is an excellent team and this win is big for our program."

The first time Lakeland played Sandpoint this season, the Bulldogs swept the Hawks in three. Sandpoint needed five games to win the second match.

"We knew we could play with Sandpoint," said Ebel. "And I think that they just started to believe in themselves tonight."

Senior Mindy Meyer led the Hawks (15-12) with 28 assists, eight digs and two aces. Senior Ashley Beck had 20 kills, senior Cassie Duncan 16 kills, junior Tracy Nielsen six blocks.

"Lakeland wanted it more," Sandpoint coach Tiwi Nicks said. "They had the right attitude. They were playing to win and they beat us."

Sandpoint's Kelsey James racked up 11 kills, 23 assists and six aces, Caitlyn Free added 11 kills and four blocks, and Ketti Wehrle had 25 digs.

Lakeland plays at No. 1 seed Moscow (20-6) on Wednesday in the regional title match. Sandpoint (17-10) plays host to Post Falls on Wednesday in a loser-out match.