The Unalaska High School Raiders played their final conference volleyball games last weekend and will go into their regional tournament as a top contender.
MaxPreps, a popular high school sports statistics website, has the team placed as the number one seed for the regions tournament, but that could change, according to Head Coach Joni Scott. A seed is a placement in the tournament based on the past performances of each team.

The student athletes finished with 10 wins and two losses. Both of those losses were to Birchwood Christian School in Chugiak, who won the state championship last year. Birchwood will likely end up with the top placement and the Raiders may end up second, according to Unalaska Athletics Director Kent Russell.
Head Coach Scott said the team has put in a lot of work this season, taking longer trips off the island than in previous years to compete in tournaments. Scott said that’s been a positive change for the volleyball team, giving them a lot more playing time.
“All the other teams are on the road system, you know, and they get to play games Monday through Saturday, and even their JV teams get to travel,” she said. “And so it makes them so much more competitive.”

Scott said the team benefits in other ways from the extra travel time too.
“We can experience life off the island,” she said. “We can do museums. We can take nature trails. I went to an art gallery with my girls.”
That extra time together has also helped with team bonding. She said this team works really well together — it’s one of the reasons why they’ve been so successful.
They took first place at both the Su Valley Tournament and Copper River Classic. They also took second place at the Lumen Christi Spiketacular Tournament in Anchorage.
Scott said there are many reasons for their success.
“I think it's a combination,” Scott said. “It's the girls, it's their chemistry, it's our coaching staff. It's all the effort they’re putting in, as well as getting more game experience.”
The entire team — junior varsity, varsity, all of the coaches — have a lot to be proud of this season, she said.
“It's a great thing to see how well the girls, the Lady Raiders, are doing this year. They should hold their heads up high,” Scott said.
The team defeated both Lumen Christi and Su Valley in their home games over the weekend. They also celebrated three senior athletes at Senior Night on Saturday: Kristal Tacata, Jenelle Remolino and Grace Tolai.
Scott was traveling with her daughter at the state swim meet over the weekend and was unable to coach the girls, but Assistant Coach Louisa Fernandez stepped up to take the reins. Fernandez said the Raiders dominated the court over the weekend, adding five more wins to their overall record. She said she is proud of this inspiring group of athletes.

“We have a fairly young team, with only three seniors, and to see how far we’ve grown since the beginning of the season is truly humbling and promising for the next few years to come,” Fernandez said.
The team will travel to the regional tournament at Cook Inlet Academy in Soldotna, Nov. 21 through 23. And then, hopefully, on to the state tournament.
“Let's make Unalaska proud and our school proud by working together and seeing if we can make it to state,” Scott said.
The 2A state volleyball tournament will take place Dec. 5-7 in Palmer.