Analy, El Mo volleyballers in NCS playoffs this week

Tigers land 13th seed in Div.3; Lions are 12th in Div. 4
Local high school volleyball teams will begin an exciting final phase of their season this week when they take the court in the North Coast Section playoffs.
Analy (13-9), fresh off an appearance in the SCL Tournament, will represent the number 13 seed in the NCS Division-3 tourney, opening up at number 4 Alhambra on Nov. 1 (after press time). Should the Tigers win, they will advance to play the survivor of the Petaluma-San Marin match on Saturday, Nov. 5 at the site of the highest remaining seed.
“We got seeded where we were expecting to be, 13th”, Analy coach Holly Folendorf reported. “We weren’t sure how the rest of the bracket would look, but all the teams in the bracket are competitive, so we were expecting the first round to be tough no matter what.”
The complete list of NCS Division-3 teams in seeding order is: Marin Catholic, Miramonte, Acalanes, Alhambra, Petaluma, St. Patrick/St. Vincent, Terra Linda, Moreau Catholic, Justin Siena, Albany, Drake, San Marin, Analy and Tennyson.
The Lions (10-12) were awarded the number 12 seed in NCS Division-4 and at press time were preparing to open the tournament at number 5 Del Norte in Crescent City on Nov. 2.  Should El Mo pull an upset, it will take on the winner of the Cardinal Newman-Fort Bragg match on Nov. 5.  
“We’re very excited to be in the playoffs for the first time in five years,” Lions coach Becky Sani said. “Our strong preseason schedule and our tough league helped move us up in seeding.  We ended our regular season playing very well.”
The list of NCS Division-4 teams is: Branson, Lick-Wilmerding, St. Joseph Notre Dame, Cardinal Newman, Del Norte, Kelseyville, Arcata, St. Mary’s, Healdsburg, John Swett, Fortuna, El Molino, Fort Bragg, St. Helena, Roseland University Prep and Gateway.
Tigers bounced in SCL playoffs    
Last week the Tigers represented the number 3 seed in the Sonoma County League Playoff Tournament, taking on number 2 Petaluma on the Trojan’s home court on Oct. 25.  The match was hotly contested but the Trojans emerged with a win in three sets; 25-23, 25-17 and 25-22.
Statistical leaders for the Tigers were Ava Ehnes (9 kills, 6 digs), Claire Rudderow (5 kills, 20 digs) and Sabrina Stephens (15 digs).