By By SCOTT NOVAK / Niles Daily Star
RICHLAND – It was a great way to start the season for the Niles varsity volleyball team.
The Lady Vikings opened up its first fall season on Saturday with a third place finish at the Gull Lake Invitational.
In the first round, Niles lost to Delton-Kellogg 25-21, 26-27 and 13-25, but rebounded to defeat Allegan 25-16 and 25-16.
In the second round, Niles defeated Marshall 25-12 and 25-23 before losing to host Gull Lake, 13-25 and 15-25.
In the quarterfinals, the Lady Vikings defeated Dowagiac 25-22, 22-25 and 15-9.
Niles was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals by Novi, 13-25 and 21-25.
Katie Bourbonnais led the Lady Vikings in kills with 26 and blocks with 17. Niles also got 15 kills from Kaylynn Stephenson and 12 kills and 13 blocks from Brittney Wolverton.
Samantha Brawley led the team in digs with 85, while Karly Kennedy finished with 44 digs and six aces.
Demi Schrader added 39 digs and 17 assists, while Maddy Peterek had seven aces and 46 assists.
Patty Anton finished with eight blocks.
Dowagiac went 3-2 on the day, including a pair of victories over Wolverine Conference foes.
The Chieftains opened up with a 19-25 and 23-25 loss to arch rival Lakeshore.
Dowagiac rebounded to defeat Paw Paw 25-20 and 27-25, Comstock 22-25, 27-25 and 15-8, and Delton-Kellogg 23-25, 25-23 and 15-10.
The Chieftains wrapped up the tournament with a 25-23, 23-25 and 12-15 loss to Niles.
Dowagiac finished third in the first round of the tournament.
In the second round, the Chieftains finished first, knocking off the No. 1 seed Delton-Kellogg.
In the single elimination round, Dowagiac fell to the Lady Vikings.
Seniors Sara Shelton and Allison Frontczak led the team in kills with 22 each. Junior Emily Primley finished with 17 kills.
Senior Stephanie Barnas finished with 56 assists. Leading the squad in digs were Tasia Diaz and Brittany Gnatz.