High five for Mead?

It’s pretty much expected at this point when talking about Greater Spokane League volleyball.

The team to beat this season, once again, is the Mead Panthers.

For the powerhouse Panthers, led by veteran coach Judy Kight, this season marks another shot at making history in the state of Washington.

Last year’s fourth straight State 4A title, which came in a three-game victory over league rival Lewis and Clark, matched the most consecutive state titles in all classifications (Odessa did it from 1989-1992) and set the record at the 4A level.

No one has accomplished five consecutive titles.

“There is a lot of pressure,” Kight said. “The girls want to live up to the tradition. Everyone wants to knock us off, and it makes for good competition … it keeps (us) on (our) toes.”

The Panthers return nine players from last year’s state championship team and have all the key ingredients that again make them the favorites in the GSL – and the state – beginning with their size.

With two 6-footers, sisters Emma and Alexis Olgard, the Panthers have a prowess at the net that is unmatched by most teams in the league.

Alexis, a 6-5 sophomore, already has received offers to play for defending NCAA Division I champion University of Nebraska and the University of Washington, the D-I champs in 2005.

Because of her age, she has only received the offers while attending camps on both campuses this summer. While she said it was exciting to start getting offers, she wants to keep her options open.

“I had a ton of fun,” Olgard said. “It was an amazing experience, but I’m not making any decisions or anything yet.”

Emma, a 6-3 senior, orally committed to play for the University of Montana last winter.

Both were first-year varsity players last year, and both are hungry for a shot at back-to-back state titles for themselves, and five straight for the Panthers.

“I think I want it more now,” Alexis said. “I wasn’t sure what it was, I had never seen it before, and I didn’t know how it felt.”

“That was the best feeling I’ve ever had – it was unbelievable,” Emma said. “To share that feeling and to know that (my sister and I) played a role in it was incredible.”

Kight knows having Alexis and Emma in the middle gives the Panthers an edge on teams, and said both will make even more of an effect this season.

“They are both stronger, quicker and smarter,” Kight said. “They have worked really hard to get better.”

The Panthers also have a solid bet at the position of setter in senior Karyn Mockel, an All-GSL first-team pick last year.

“She is so consistent, solid, smooth – she calms everyone down,” Kight said. “She’s what you want in a setter.”

Senior outside hitters Meg Ryan and Amanda Dahlstrom, whose sophomore sister, Mady, made the varsity roster this year, and rightside hitter Beth Altena, a senior, round out the starting lineup.

The Panthers get to see their top two opponents right away, beginning with Lewis and Clark tonight and Shadle Park on Tuesday. Both games are at home. Although the Panthers are thinking state title in the back of their minds, they aren’t getting carried away.

“I’d say we’re very anxious and very eager,” Emma said. “But it’s day by day, and we still have a long way to go – but it’s definitely a goal.”