Three days after finishing second in the Rocky Mountain Champions Classic in Utah, the Century High School volleyball team opened up 4A Fifth/Sixth District play against cross-town rival Pocatello.

    In front of a loud and raucous crowd in the Palace, the Diamondbacks made some uncharacteristic mistakes but were able to hold for a straight sets win 25-15, 25-19, 25-20.

    Not only was the match the district opener for both teams, it was the first time that Century senior Ann Clappier had played in the Palace since her transfer from Pocatello over the summer.

    When introduced, the Pocatello students voiced their displeasure at seeing Clappier in the cross-town rivals uniform by sending some boos in her direction.

    But despite the treatment from the home fans, Clappier let her play do the talking, leading the Diamondbacks with 17 kills and two blocks.

    Century took the first set after building a 10 point lead early. But service errors allowed the Indians to creep back into the match as Century had eight service errors in the opening set. But the Indians could not capitalize and cut into the 10 point deficit.

    “That was one of the worst-serving games we have had,” Century head coach Pauline Thiros said. “We made a lot mistakes but were able to work through them and get the win.”

    Thiros said there was no doubt that her team was experiencing some hangover from last weekend’s tournament. She said practice had been really tough as the team was recovering physically and mentally from the weekend.

    Midway through the second set, the Diamondbacks had a scary moment that hushed the entire crowd at the Palace and left one of Century’s top players on the floor clutching her side.

    Century’s Sami Parris was going for a ball near the post for the net when she bumped into a teammate and slammed full speed into the padded net post and crumbled to the floor in extreme pain.

    After a few minutes, Parris was able to get to her feet and to the bench were she received medical attention before leaving with her parents for the hospital.

    It was unknown as of press time what Parris’ injury was.

    The Indians took advantage of the long break while Parris was being treated by talking and regrouping together as a team.

    The Indians came out aggressive and shaved a double-digit Century lead down to four points.

    “We are really sorry about what happened to Sami and we never want to see anyone get hurt,” Pocatello head coach Kolay Sutton said. “I think any delayed time period in a game can be a momentum shifter. I think we definitely came out with more momentum.”

    The Diamondbacks held on to win the set 25-19.

    Pocatello came out on fire for the third set, jumping out a 4-1 lead. But the lead would be short lived as Clappier and the Diamondbacks rallied to take another 10 point lead.

    The injury bug hit the Diamondbacks again late in the third set when sophomore defensive specialist Micquel Blattner left the game with an arm injury.

    Down two players, the Diamondbacks did not get flustered even as Pocatello pulled within four points twice at the end of the set. Clappier got the final kill to end the match and give Century the win.

    “We had a few accidents and a couple things did not go as planned,” Thiros said. “It’s great experience and it is nice to win fairly easily with a second-string setter and players playing in different positions. It was a tough playing environment tonight and the girls did a good job of keeping their composure and playing our game.”

    Sutton was proud with the way her team fought against the two-time defending state champion Diamondbacks. But while being proud is good she was not pleased with the loss.     

    “I told them I am proud of you but not satisfied and you should not be either,” Sutton said. “But it is early in the season and I have to remind them of that. It is also  unfortunate that we have to play Century for our first conference game, but if they continue to play like they did and improve like they are we are going to have a bright future.”

    Dana Drecksel led the Indians with five kills and four blocks. Alissa Holmes added four kills and Jayme Ferreira added seven digs.

    Kayla Ellis finished the night with 15 kills and eight digs for Century. Henny Hearn had six kills and three blocks and Jacqueline Cuttlers had 12 digs.

    Century (19-2, 1-0 4A Fifth/Sixth District) hosts Blackfoot Wednesday. Pocatello (8-8, 0-1) play at Shelley today at 7:30 p.m.