CHERRY— The Grizzlies appear to be settling into a winning pattern after overcoming a strong challenge from the Tigers Tuesday night to claim their fourth win in their last five games.

Cherry’s blocking helped them win the first game 25-18. But North Woods battled back in game two, edging the Tigers 25-23. The Tigers rebounded in game three with a lopsided 25-16 win before the Grizzlies put it away with a 25-20 score in game four and a 15-9 win in the tiebreaker.

“The Cherry match-up was exciting,” said Assistant Head Coach Dee Ann Sandberg. “Serving errors killed us, but the girls pulled it out.”

Regan Ratai and Coley Olson were punishing at the net, notching 18 and 15 kills respectively. Ratai added four blocks, three aces, and six digs, while Olson tallied three aces, one block and six digs. Setter Claire Beaudry notched 34 assists along with an ace and a kill. Hanna Sandberg tallied ten digs from the back court, while Kate Stone notched five kills, four digs, and a block. Karlyn Pierce notched five kills, three aces, and two blocks, while Maddy Serna had five digs.

The Grizzlies had an easier time when they hosted a struggling Littlefork-Big Falls squad last Thursday, sweeping the Vikings 25-19, 25-21, and 25-9.

Ratai had another strong performance, with 13 kills, five blocks, three aces, and two blocks. Neiva Smith tallied five aces, two digs, and a kill, while Olson notched five digs, three kills, and an ace. Beaudry tallied 20 assists, a kill, and an ace, while Handberg notched six digs and two aces.

Despite the sweep, Sandberg said the team still has room for improvement. “We still had errors that we’re working on in practice,” she said. “We need to be bigger at the net and block our opponents,” she said.