Tides volleyball team sweeps Seahawks

Gig Harbor’s offense too powerful; PHS records five blocks

Marques Hunter

of the Gateway

They may not be tall, but they make up for it with heart and intensity.

The Gig Harbor Tides volleyball squad made short work of crosstown rival Peninsula last Friday, sweeping the Seahawks in three games.

The victory extended Gig Harbor’s winning streak to four (4-0 overall, 0-0 Class 4A Narrows League).

The Tides believe their success before league play will give them confidence to strive for a league championship.

“I’m really excited that we are playing like this,” said Gig Harbor’s Samantha North, who had seven kills. “We can go into our league pumped up because we just (beat) our crosstown rival.”

The Tides were aggressive against Peninsula. They set the tempo early on, winning the first game 25-16.

In the pivotal second game, Peninsula took an 8-4 lead behind senior Kayla Erickson, who had a match-high 15 kills.

But the lead didn’t last very long. Gig Harbor tied it 11-11 and never turned back.

The Tides continued to put the Seahawks defense on their heels with a flurry of spikes and won the second game 25-18.

Gig Harbor jumped out to a 20-12 lead in the final game and finished off Peninsula, 25-17.

Tides head coach Sue Westering said they made a few errors in the second game, but the momentum shifted and her team took advantage of it.

“Any time we enter a gym, it’s not us playing somebody else, it’s us playing ourselves,” Westering said. “If we can eliminate our own mistakes and play what were capable of, you saw what we did.”

The Tides didn’t rack up huge numbers in the blocks category, but they still played good defense. Gig Harbor’s Anna Guenther and Meredith Gurr combined for 18 digs.

Peninsula, which had a frontline that averaged nearly 6 feet, had just five blocks. Seahawks head coach Ann Lovrovich said they beat themselves.

“They (Gig Harbor) ran everything smooth and got plays to its setter, and we couldn’t get the ball to our setter,” Lovrovich said. “We usually get a lot of kills in the middle.”

Gig Harbor Allie Tonzi said the Tides came into the match ready to play.

“We came out with hustle and played really well,” Tonzi said. “We are kind of a small team, but we have big hearts and big plays.”

Peninsula (2-3 overall, 1-0 3A SPSL) opened up league play with a straight-set win over Clover Park (25-11, 25-12, 25-21).