Spiking, serving and surging

BIDDEFORD — If Tuesday night’s victory over Kennebunk was further indication of a season turnaround, the Biddeford volleyball team may be doing it just in the nick of time.

The Tigers’ 3-0 win over Kennebunk (25-15, 25-14, 25-19) is their fourth win in a row, their longest winning streak of the season.

Before the winning streak, Biddeford (7-6) had a 3-6 record, including a three-game losing streak to powerhouses Greely, Falmouth and Scarborough.

Tigers coach Ruth Shaw said the team seemed to be putting too much pressure on themselves.

“I think early on, after [the Greely game] they got away from having some fun and enjoying the game,” Shaw said. “The game is fun. When you think about winning and you think about your skill and you put things ahead of its time, then you stop having fun and the game kind of goes ”˜ehh.’”

The Tigers seemed to have plenty of fun throughout the game, as Biddeford outmatched the Rams through the first two games. Kennebunk (4-8) made a valient comeback in the third game, only trailing 22-19 at one point, but the Tigers managed to pull together and end the match on three straight points.

Bidddeford captain Alyssa Drapeau said the team was motivated by the fact the contest was the last home game for five Tigers seniors: Christina Archambault, Stephanie Duval, Kendra Charette, Renaie Leblond and captain Jen Vadnais.

“We’ve just been becoming more confident in our skills and we knew this was our senior night, so we were pumped and we just knew we had to play any game like it was a regular game,” Drapeau said.

Drapeau did her part by performing brillaintly in all phases; serving, setting and scoring. She spent much of her evening setting up shots for fellow captain Keila Grigware, who continously pounded shots into the Rams side of the court for points.

As of Tuesday evening, the Tigers were in sixth place in the Maine Principal Association Heal Point standings and have the same number of wins as fifth place Scarborough. However, the Red Storm have two more games to play this week, while Biddeford will finish their regular season on Thursday in a match with Gorham.

Biddeford defeated the Rams (5-8) by a 3-0 score on Sept. 21.

“We play Gorham, so that will affect how things come out I think,” Shaw said. “We beat them, but one never knows whose night it’s going to be. Depending on where they were, it could be anybody’s night. We’re just going to go in, have some fun and do the best we can.”