KENNEWICK, Wash. 鈥 From one extreme to the other, there isn鈥檛 one emotion that spared West Valley鈥檚 volleyball team on Saturday.
Emotion of the most intense degree, like the anguish and heartbreak of losing its first match on the final day of the season.
But once that sharp pain was somehow suppressed there came the joy and pride of finishing the year by paying tribute to its core identity 鈥 unshakeable resolve.
Down 2-1 and trailing in the fourth set 12-7, the Rams rediscovered what briefly went missing for one afternoon and rallied to beat Battle Ground in five sets to capture third place in the Class 4A state tournament at the Toyota Center.
In a season filled with such stirring comebacks, West Valley closed out the trophy final just a few hours after being unable to do so against Emerald Ridge, which seized control early and never let go in a three-set semifinal victory.
鈥淚t was the first time all season we had an off match and it was shocking,鈥 said senior libero Megan Martin. 鈥淏ut we鈥檝e been a turnaround team all year and we needed a fresh mindset. We had to come back and realize that third is still an amazing accomplishment and fight for that. It was so hard but we did it.鈥
After absorbing a humbling 25-15, 25-17, 26-24 setback to Emerald Ridge, top-ranked and previously unbeaten West Valley got no consolation gift in facing Battle Ground, which was ranked No. 3 and won this match last year for a third-place trophy.
And despite a five-set semifinal loss to eventual champion Curtis, the Tigers started out playing like it meant more to them, pushing the Rams to the brink in the fourth set. But West Valley found its comeback stride and prevailed 22-25, 25-23, 19-25, 25-22, 15-10 to wrap up a 30-1 season and earn the program鈥檚 fifth state trophy in the last six years.
鈥淲e had to shake that loss off and prevent it from happening again,鈥 said senior Sami Meyer, a four-year varsity veteran. 鈥淥ur errors were definitely uncharacteristic and that hurts the ego. But I think we all felt inside we would come back and find a way to win.鈥
West Valley coach Katie Hinckley, who took her full allotment of 15 timeouts Saturday to try and fix and tweak things, finally saw her team show up at the most critical time against Battle Ground.
鈥淲e just didn鈥檛 play our game against Emerald Ridge, for whatever reason,鈥 she said. 鈥淎fterward I said you can go ahead and be mad, but you鈥檝e got to get it together because we have one more match and it would be a shame to just roll over. It was a struggle at times, but in the fourth game we started firing and snapped out of it. We came back like the team I know.鈥
Jillian Berg, the CBBN player of the year, had 17 kills in the trophy finale and none were bigger than the three she put away early in the fifth set that rocketed the Rams out to a 9-4 lead. During a 4-0 run, Berg and Meyer each had a kill and Megan Finley combined with Meyer on a stuff block.
Parker Webb had 13 kills, including swings that resulted in the 23rd and 25th points in the fourth set. Setter Erica Meyer collected 50 assists in the five-set grinder, and Julia Mellander put together 12 kills and three blocks.
Emerald Ridge may have been unranked coming in, but the Jaguars were last year鈥檚 state runner-up and they were again on Saturday, falling in four to Curtis in the championship final. Emerald Ridge clearly benefited from four tough meetings with Curtis and the fact that its league, the SPSL South, had four teams in the state field.
Curtis, ranked second behind West Valley most of the season, lost its first match to 2A power Tumwater and went undefeated the rest of the way for the school鈥檚 first state volleyball title.
Since 2010, West Valley has two state titles and three third-place trophies 鈥 all with Hinckley at the helm.
鈥淲e didn鈥檛 want one loss to change everything and that鈥檚 why taking third was so huge,鈥 the coach said. 鈥淭hey had to do it for themselves and for each other. This way they end the season with smiles and feeling good on a high note. To go through a whole season in 4A and lose only one match 鈥 that鈥檚 something to be proud of. It鈥檚 amazing, really.鈥
West Valley highlights
Vs. Battle Ground: Jillian Berg 17 kills, 16 digs; Julia Mellander 12 kills, 3 blocks; Sami Meyer 10 digs; Erica Meyer 50 assists, 10 digs; Parker Webb 13 kills, 2 blocks.
Vs. Emerald Ridge: Berg 11 kills, 8 digs; Mellander 7 kills, 4 blocks; Webb 9 kills, 3 aces, 2 digs; E. Meyer 24 assists, 10 digs; Megan Martin 16 digs; S. Meyer 12 digs.
Eisenhower highlights (Friday)
Vs. Graham Kapowsin: Jesse Sydney 26 kills, 7 digs; Payton Calhoun 16 kills, 5 digs, 3 aces; Morgan Kline 43 assists, 5 kills, 4 blocks, 6 digs; Sydney Munn 4 kills, 5 aces, 3 digs; Shania Scott 14 digs; Mikayla Pryse 2 kills; Brooklyn Cassel 8 digs, 2 kills.
Vs. Battle Ground: Sydney 11 kills, 6 digs; Calhoun 6 kills; Kline 21 assists, 3 kills, 4 digs; Munn 3 aces, 3 kills; Scott 10 digs.
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