Mead gets third state title in 4A

EVERETT — Every time the final point of a match is up for grabs, Mead players get higher at the net, pass better and sell out defensively.

Every time this season, the last point belonged to them.

For the third straight season, the Panthers won the State 4A volleyball championship, defeating Eisenhower 25-23, 19-25, 25-20 and 25-21.

With the undefeated 33-0 season, Mead joins Kentlake (2000-02) and Renton (1980-82) as the only big-school champions to three-peat and ran its match winning streak to 45.

“This group has had really high goals since Day One, from the first time they got on varsity to now,” Mead head coach Judy Kight said. “That’s a pretty tough goal to meet and I am just unbelievably proud of these guys.”

This edition of the Panthers featured incredible balance, with six players notching seven or more digs in the championship and four picking up seven or more kills.

“Our setters do an awesome job mixing up our options just to keep people off-balance,” said Mead outside hitter Mara Ryan, who had nine kills and nine digs in the championship. “I think that’s kept us strong, and just practicing solid defense.”

In the second straight 4A championship game, the Panthers faced off against Eisenhower (29-4), and Mead squeezed out the first game 25-23 before Ike battled back for a 25-19 win.

Ike continued to push the Panthers, building a 10-6 lead in the third game as steely glares replaced the usual laughs Mead uses to punctuate mistakes.

“Sometimes we kind of just get into a little funk and then just pull out of it by talking extra,” Ryan said. “Or just going back to basics, mixing it up and keeping them on their toes.”

Mead pulled out of this one in a big way, going on an 11-2 run, sparked by three blocks and two kills by senior middle blocker Erin Norris, who took over the net.

They hung on to win that game, then broke open a 20-19 fourth game with two of Nicole Solum’s team-high 13 kills and two from Norris.

Senior setter Amy Herron provided the season’s final point, burying a free ball to win it.

“This one’s special because the seniors have been playing together ever since we were 9,” said Herron of the group of eight Panthers seniors, all of whom played big minutes in the championship. “We’re not all going to play together ever again.”

Megan Thigpen had 10 kills and 13 digs, Cassie Dobson had seven kills and 10 digs and Norris finished with nine kills and seven blocks.

Eisenhower, led by Nikki Hernandez’s 17 kills and 6-2 middle blocker Cassie Robbins’ eight blocks and 10 digs, finished second for the second consecutive year. Mead beat Ike last Saturday in the regional championship.

“We’ve always made winning look easy,” Cadets head coach Brad Ackerman said. “Mead makes winning look easy, too. Both teams are champions, nobody makes winning look that easy. They’re a great champion and we’re not disappointed.”

Early in the semifinals against Bellarmine Prep (32-2), Mead needed to scratch and claw to even make the championship match.

Bellarmine led Mead 19-18 in the first game before the Panthers finished with a 7-1 run, and in the second game, the Lions led 22-18, which Mead answered with the final seven points of the game. Mead closed Bellarmine out easily, winning 25-14.

“We knew we were all right,” Herron said. “It took a lot of heart and effort. In practices, we always did scrimmages where we started with 14 and the other side started with 20 and we had to win for practice to be over, so we were used to it.”

LC (30-7) kicked off the second day of the tournament with a 26-28, 25-17, 25-18, 20-25, 15-5 win over Garfield (21-13), then picked up a fifth-place trophy by knocking off Olympia (28-9) in four games.

“That was a better team,” Tigers head coach Julie Yearout said after the team was inconsistent on Friday. “We ended on a win, and went, what, 3-1 in our first time here. We lost the wrong one, but I think they’ll be happier with the way it ended.”

In the placing match, LC split the first two games before winning a difficult third set 28-26 even though the Tigers were called for seven setting errors. LC raced out to a 24-17 lead in the fourth game behind five Ivy Bush kills, then weathered a 6-0 Olympia run before Janae Forney’s kill ended the match.

According to Yearout’s five seniors, the key was just forgetting about a tough first-round loss to Bellarmine, which finished sixth.

“We were just making fun of ourselves,” said Arianne Jackson, who had five kills and 16 digs against Garfield. She, along with senior libero Danielle Porter, led the team defensively over the two days.

“There’s no benefit to thinking about (the loss),” Porter said. “It was a great season.”

Ivy Bush led the Tigers offensively in her last day in an LC uniform, racking up 31 kills over the two matches.

“It’s really good to get a win after losing a big game,” Bush said. “We’re leaving on a winning note.”