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Marlette, looking to slip into the Class C top 10 in the final rankings this week, have won five straight titles and are the odds-on favorite again. The Lady Raiders, 39-10-5, open play at Brown City on Thursday night with a first round match against winless Sandusky.

Having done so well in the past few seasons. Coach Fred McDowell of Marlette said his team no longer go can hide in the underdog role. They've been playing the part of the favorite for some time.

"We've been wearing that target all year, but I don't think we've worn that proudly all the time," smiled McDowell.

With a team already led by All-State hitter Jenna Lange and outstanding senior setter Josie Volz, the younger players have grown up over the season because of a fierce tournament schedule, including last Saturday's Anchor Bay Invitational.

"We could have done a little better in the won-lost column, but the tournaments we've went to have been a little tougher.," said McDowell.

The Anchor Bay meet was comprised almost entirely of Class A schools. The Lady Raiders have been in, at least, six other invitationals, including Bay City Central, Garber, and Mt. Morris. They won titles at Armada, Garber and the County Tournament.

If Marlette gets by Sandusky on Thursday, as expected, the next foe will be Brown City in the semifinals on Saturday on the Lady Green Devils' home floor.

BC has played well most of the season in posting a 25-13-4 record. Three of the losses have been to Marlette and two to Ubly, the GTC East co-champs.

"We feel we've played pretty good volleyball at times this year. This has been a real successful year," said Coach Dennis Sidebottom of Brown City, which won a tournament in Gladwin recently.

"We'll do the best we can. That's what we're working for," said Sidebottom. "We've played pretty good volleyball, especially the last month.

"We feel good about ourselves. We think we do a lot of things pretty well. But, we know to beat Marlette that everyone will have to bring their ÔA' game."

Class B at Imlay City

The Cros-Lex Pioneers drew perennial power Yale in Saturday's first semifinal at Imlay City High School. Led by strong senior middle hitter Erin Lamb, the Lady Pioneers have played reasonably well lately under new coach Michelle Huber, but just have not had too many wins to show for it. If C-L can upset Yale, it could provide the impetus for a District title. It is a big Ôif', though.

Class D at Deckerville

Several teams here probably feel they can win this district if they play their best. However, the Lady Eagles of Deckerville have been playing very well in recent tournaments after facing strong competition in the GTC East all season. With the addition of playing on the home floor, Deckerville appears to be the team to beat.

The Lady Eagles drew a first round a bye in the first round and face the Kingston/CPS winner in a semifinal at 12 noon.