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IRONWOOD -- What's the easiest way to take over the King or the Queen of the Mountain? Well, certainly, knock the old "monarch" off and take over his or her spot.
That's what Kingsford did in this week's Upper Peninsula high school volleyball polls conducted by the U.P. Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
As the king- or queen-in-waiting in Divisions 1-3, the No. 2 Flivvers had to be excited for a chance at No. 1 Calumet during the Clash of the Divisions quadrangular held in Crystal Falls on Saturday.
Even as just a best-of-three at a multi-match event instead of a traditional dual-meet best-of-five, Kingsford (20-3) staked its claim for the top spot with an 18-25, 25-16, 25-19 victory over the Copper Kings (18-11-1) on Saturday.
And the UPSSA voters took notice, making the Flivvers a unanimous No. 1 just like the Copper Kings had been unanimous in that spot the week before.
Kingsford didn't hurt its cause by having a perfect week, knocking off Menominee and Gladstone in three sets in regular duals, then downing Forest Park 2-1 and Marquette 2-0 in other matches at the Clash of the Divisions.
While Calumet started last week with straight-sets victories over Negaunee and Westwood, the Copper Kings also lost 2-0 to Forest Park and defeated Marquette 2-1 at the Clash of the Divisions.
There was only one other change in the rankings, and Gwinn took the hit, falling from No. 5 to the "other receiving votes" list in Divisions 1-3.
The Modeltowners (14-11-3) ended a three-match losing streak that came against some of the top teams in the U.P. -- Hancock, Calumet and Forest Park -- with a three-set win at home over Manistique.
But it wasn't enough as Norway (16-8-2) supplanted Gwinn at No. 5 after the Knights won at Iron Mountain in four sets and at North Central in three.
Squeezing between those teams in D 1-3 is Negaunee at No. 3. The Miners (19-13-1) had their loss to Calumet, but also defeated Jeffers in a dual meet. Then at the Mid-Michigan Mayhem Tournament in downstate Mount Pleasant, Negaunee defeated LeRoy Pine River and Maple City Glen Lake, split two sets with Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port, and lost to Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart, Beal City and Fraser.
In Division 4, the top five and even the "others" list remained unchanged.
That included Baraga (22-1) staying put at No. 3 after three-set wins at Ontonagon and Lake Linden-Hubbell, and Newberry (18-7-4) remaining at No. 5 after four-set triumphs over Brimley at home and Rudyard on the road.
Hancock (25-2-1) is still a unanimous No. 1 following three-set victories at Westwood and Ishpeming, while Forest Park (31-4-1) is just as entrenched at No. 2 with three-set, dual-match wins over Superior Central and Rapid River, then at the Clash of the Divisions, sweeping Calumet and Marquette 2-0 each and falling to Kingsford 2-1.
LL-H (13-4) held onto No. 4 following a pair of three-setters, a win at Watersmeet and home loss to Baraga.
Cedarville-DeTour (22-4-5) is the "others" team, having won at St. Ignace in four sets.
Next week is the final week of the regular season, with MHSAA district tournaments slated to begin on Monday, Nov. 2.
In matches tonight, Kingsford is at Marquette, Ishpeming at North Central, Stephenson at Munising, Pickford at Newberry, West Iron County at L'Anse, Cheboygan at Manistique, and Baraga at Bessemer.
On Monday, L'Anse is at Chassell, while on Tuesday, it will be Ishpeming at Gwinn, Iron Mountain at Westwood, Negaunee at Gladstone, Norway at Munising, Superior Central at Rapid River, and L'Anse at Baraga.
The regular season ends next Thursday with Calumet Copper Island Academy at Marquette, Superior Central at Munising, Ontonagon at L'Anse, Baraga at Ewen-Trout Creek, and Manistique at Escanaba.
While district brackets haven't been released yet by the MHSAA at its website, www.mhsaa.com, assignments for where teams will play were determined before the season. Each of the four divisions has 32 districts, meaning every district champion will need five additional victories to secure a state title.
In Division 1, Marquette will be in a four-team district hosted by Gaylord and also include Alpena and Petoskey, while in Division 2, Negaunee was placed in a district hosted by Escanaba that also includes Gladstone, Houghton and Kingsford.
For Division 3, Westwood and Gwinn are in a district hosted by Jeffers that also includes Calumet, West Iron County and Ironwood, while Manistique plays in a Menominee-hosted district also has Bark River-Harris, Iron Mountain and Norway.
In Division 4, Ishpeming hosts a crowded district including the Hematites, Munising and Superior Central, along with Rapid River, Mid Peninsula and Big Bay de Noc.
Also in D-4, Baraga hosts a seven-team district with the Vikings, L'Anse, Hancock, Chassell, LL-H, Dollar Bay and Calumet Copper Island Academy.
And Newberry plays in a D-4 district hosted by Brimley and also including Cedarville and Pickford.
Story contents based on email received from the U.P. Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee's email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.