The Nikiski Bulldogs will take on the Valdez Buccaneers at 3:15 p.m. on Thursday.
Nikiski is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Alaska's top teams: Kenai Central, who was ranked sixth in their home state at the time (Nikiski was ranked 13th). Nikiski fell just short of Kenai Central by a score of 3-2 on Saturday. The defeat continues a trend for the Bulldogs in their matchups with the Kardinals: they've now lost six in a row.
Nikiski took Kenai Central into a fifth set but they suffered a heartbreaking six-point loss. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 25-16, 21-25, 20-25, 25-20, 15-9.
Despite the loss, Nikiski saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Abby White had 15 digs.
Meanwhile, Valdez came tearing into Saturday's contest with five straight wins and they left with even more momentum. They came out on top against the Rams by a score of 3-1.
Valdez was especially dominant in the third set. The match finished with set scores of 25-16, 22-25, 25-10, 25-21.
Nikiski's defeat dropped their record down to 36-18-7. As for Valdez, they pushed their record up to 37-13-3 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home.
Nikiski came out on top in a nail-biter against Valdez in their previous meeting back in October, sneaking past 1-0. Will Nikiski repeat their success, or does Valdez have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
