WINSTON – The Douglas volleyball team beat Siuslaw 3-1 Tuesday night in a huge Far West League match.

After a tight first set that went back and forth, Douglas was able to claim a 25-23 victory. In the second set Siuslaw jumped out to an early lead and held off the Trojans throughout to take the set 25-19. Once again in the third and fourth sets, Douglas and Siuslaw battled for every point, exchanging several lead changes. Douglas came up with some clutch points late in the match to win on senior night at Douglas High School.

The win now catapults Douglas into a first place tie with Siuslaw at the top of the Far West standings. Both teams are now 7-2 in league play.

Douglas was led by Rachel Hickam with nine kills, three aces, 23 digs and four stuff blocks. Darian Mitchell had 17 kills and five stuff blocks to go along with 27 assists from Molly Lavin. Maddyson Wisbey and Lainey Rincon both contributed 22 digs. Calyissa Anderson had three aces.

“I love playing good teams like that because they challenge you,” head coach Carl Bone said after the match. “ We have to work hard, the ones you have to work hard for are the sweetest.  I’m so proud of my girls this year, every step of the way they have really exceeded our expectations. I mean, how much fun was that!?”

Douglas plays in its final league game against Marshfield on Thursday night. The Pirates challenged the Trojans in a five set thriller earlier in the season.

“We still have to play Thursday night so we have to keep that in perspective. We can’t spend too much time patting ourselves on the back,” coach Bone explained, “We got to look forward.”

Siuslaw plays North Bend Thursday, which is the only other team in league play to defeat the Vikings. North Bend is 6-3 in league and only a game behind both Douglas and Siuslaw. Thursday’s action will determine the Far West League champion depending on the tiebreaker.

SCORING
DOUGLAS def Siuslaw (25-23, 19-25, 25-22, 25-23)

– By Josh Gaunt, CBS Sports Radio 1490 The Score