LC’s turn to carry GSL

KENNEWICK – The Mead High volleyball team’s five-year reign as State 4A champion came to an end Friday, but Lewis and Clark is poised to carry on the Greater Spokane League tradition.

GSL and Eastern Regional champ Lewis and Clark advanced to the semifinals with a 25-17, 27-25, 31-29 win over Kentwood that felt like a five-game match not three at the Toyota Center.

LC (28-1) opened with a 25-18, 25-8, 25-21 sweep of Edmonds-Woodway. The Tigers will meet Skyview of Vancouver in the semifinals today at 2 p.m.

The best Mead (25-7) can hope for is fourth. Olympia knocked off the Panthers 25-19, 24-26, 25-19, 14-25, 15-9 in the quarterfinals.

“We were just off in that match,” Mead coach Judy Kight said. “We could never get into our game, and Olympia played a very consistent match.”

Olympia will take on hometown-favorite Kamiakin in the other semifinal.

Mead opened play in defending champ style, breezing past Puyallup 25-20, 25-20, 25-12 before running into stubborn Olympia.

Lewis and Clark’s quarterfinal win was anything but easy.

“It really did feel like a (five-game match),” LC coach Julie Yearout said.

The Tigers trailed 24-22 in the second game. But a kill by senior middle hitter Chloe Rowand coupled with an unforced error by Kentwood allowed LC to tie it at 24. Moments later, the Tigers took advantage of another unforced error before senior outside hitter Oceana Bush had one of her thundering kills on set point.

In the third game, the Conquerors opened a 12-4 lead. But the Tigers slowly chipped away, eventually knotting the match at 14.

In the end, LC fought off six game points before prevailing on a tip from Rowand.

“We had to defend quite a few game points,” Yearout said. “That just shows a lot of character to go through that many rotations. People think we’re only strong when Oceana and Chloe are in the front. We have a pretty balanced team. We made some great defensive plays. They weren’t quitting. They weren’t ready to say, ‘Let’s just go to game four and start all over again.’ ”

Bush led with 14 kills and 22 digs. Rowand added nine kills and five blocks.

Mead will try to bounce back this afternoon at 3:30 when it faces Monroe. The winner will face the winner of the Marysville-Pilchuck/Kentwood match at 8 for fourth and seventh places.

Against Olympia, the Panthers never found a groove. Their best play came in the fourth game. But the momentum didn’t carry over to the fifth set.

“We just had a hard time getting into the (match) and I don’t know why,” Kight said. “It was really all on us. We can do better. We’re going to try and finish this tournament a lot better than that.”

Mead junior middle hitter Alexis Olgard had a match-high 29 kills to go with 19 digs, seven blocks and three aces. Sophomore Kuulei Zalopany added 20 digs and four aces.

Nicole Mertens led Olympia with 16 kills.

In LC’s opener, the Tigers rode the capable shoulders of Rowand, who had 18 kills and six blocks.

The Tigers started a tad slowly in the first set before reaching their usual stride. E-W tied the score at 14, but kills from Rowand and Bush started LC on a roll.

LC opened a 23-7 lead in the second set, and a kill by reserve middle hitter Janele Vogt off a back set closed out the game.

It was more of the same for the Tigers in the third set. Bush finished with 16 digs, 10 kills and five blocks and senior libero Mariah Westlake had 16 digs.

In Mead’s opener, the Panthers jumped on Puyallup quickly, opening an 11-4 lead in the first set. The Vikings never got any closer than three before Zalopany got the game-deciding kill.