Wampus Cats notch huge sweep of 3A Spartans

CLARK FORK — Ellie Lambert tallied 14 digs, and Brooke Stevens 21 set assists and nine digs, leading the 1A Wampus Cats to a résumé-building 25-23, 25-23, 25-14 straight set sweep of the 3A Spartans in a rock solid volleyball home opener on Thursday night at Clark Fork High School.

Clark Fork head coach Cindy Derr had nothing but high praise for the play of her team, which was strong in all phases.

“They just went point for point the first and second games, and it kind of blew the wind out of Priest River,” said Derr. “The girls are hitting on all cylinders, digging up everything, with spot on passing to the setters.”

Tessa Sutton posted a team-high six kills and three aces, while Hailey Bristol, Grace Shelton and Ellie Kiebert all had five kills, as the Wampus Cats (6-1) are getting big contributions from a host of players. With Stevens setting the attack, the Cats’ balanced offense proved it’s for real with a strong showing against an Intermountain League team.

“My starters are all producing, and not making a lot of errors. Team dynamics are amazing,” lauded Derr. “Pretty cool win to beat a school that’s two classes above us. The girls had to fight for every point tonight, then they got a run going in the third game.”

Clark Fork is at Kootenai in a North Star League opener.