CLASS 4A
When: Friday and Saturday
Where: Saint Martin’s University and Timberline H.S.
Local teams’ games: Mount Vernon vs. Central Valley, 8 a.m., court 3 (Saint Martin’s); Snohomish vs. Wenatchee, 11:45 a.m., court 1 (Saint Martin’s).
Defending champ: Bellarmine Prep
Favorite: Bellarmine Prep
How the local teams stack up:
Snohomish and Mount Vernon advanced to state out of the District 1 tournament with the Panthers beating the Bulldogs 3-0 in the district championship match.
Snohomish is a team that can make some noise in this tournament boasting one of the best outside hitters in the state and a Second-Team All-American in Lanesha Reagan.
Reagan led her team on an impressive district tournament run that saw the Panthers lose just one set. She is the type of player that can take over any match and always gives her team a chance to win no matter how tough the opponent. That said, if the Panthers get through their opening round match against Wenatchee, they will see Bellarmine Prep in the second round. The potential quarterfinal match between the No. 1 ranked Lions and the No. 4 ranked Panthers (according to the Washington State Volleyball Coaches Poll) would be one of the highlights of Day One of the tournament.
While Snohomish comes in with an impressive body of work throughout the season, Mount Vernon is a team that put it together late. The Bulldogs came into the district tournament as the No. 5 seed, but scored victories over No. 4 seeded Jackson and top-seeded Edmonds-Woodway before falling to the Panthers in the championship match.
The Bulldogs have a tough first-round match against No. 7 ranked Central Valley and should they manage an upset it would get even tougher likely facing No. 2 ranked Newport in the second round.
The Panthers are a dark horse to play for a championship and Wesco’s best chance at bringing home a trophy.
CLASS 3A
When: Friday and Saturday
Where: Saint Martin’s University and Timberline H.S.
Local teams’ games: Oak Harbor vs. Eastside Catholic, 11:45 a.m., court 3 (Saint Martin’s); Meadowdale vs. University, 3:15 p.m., court 3 (Saint Martin’s).
Defending champ: Prairie
Favorites: Southridge and University
How the local teams stack up:
It would seem that the 3A tournament is a bit more open than the 4A tournament without a team as good as Bellarmine Prep to be the clear cut favorite, though Southridge and University are both very good.
As fate would have it, Meadowdale draws University in the first round, though the Mavs are optimistic. University did lose earlier in the season to Mountlake Terrace, a team Meadowdale has beaten twice this year, in a mid-season tournament. That fact alone gives the Mavericks a chance to pull off an upset over the No. 2-ranked Titans.
Though the Mavericks are unranked, they could be a sleeper in this tournament. They have lost just four matches all season and they have at least one win over three of the four teams they have lost to. The road will be tough though, if the Mavs get past University, No. 3 Timberline likely awaits.
On the strength of its postseason run to the district championship, Oak Harbor earned the No. 9 ranking in the state by the coaches. However, rankings can be deceiving. The Wildcats finished 4-5 in league and 6-11 overall before getting hot in districts. Before falling to the Wildcats in the district opener, Meadowdale had swept Oak Harbor earlier in the season.
Both the Wildcats and the Mavericks will have a tough road to bring home a trophy.
CLASS 1A
When: Friday and Saturday
Where: Yakima Valley SunDome
Local team’s game: King’s vs. Freeman, Friday, 1:30 p.m.
Defending champ: Castle Rock
Favorites: King’s, Cascade-Leavenworth
How local teams stack up:
King’s heads into the state tournament unbeaten and having lost only one set in going 18-0 this season and taking home the Cascade Conference title. It’s how they did in two prestigious tournaments that sheds light on how well the Knights could do this weekend.
In the SunDome Volleyball Festival in mid-September, King’s went 6-0 in pool play before dropping a pair of matches to Cascade-Leavenworth and 4A Chiawana. The Knights could face Cascade again in the semifinals on Saturday. King’s and Cascade-Leavenworth are ranked No. 1 and 2, respectively, in the latest coaches poll.
Last month, King’s went 4-0 and beat Moses Lake and Kennewick and two large Idaho schools at the Crossover Touranment in Spokane. All four were impressive wins that show the Knights might just be getting better as the season has gone along.
King’s is led by outside hitter Alysanne Van Dyke, Sydney Gaenz and Rachel Morinaga.
CLASS 2B
When: Friday and Saturday
Where: Yakima Valley SunDome
Local team’s game: Darrington vs. Adna, Friday, 9:45 a.m.
Defending champ: Reardan
Favorites: Colfax, La Conner, Wahkiakum
How local teams stack up:
The Loggers have had a great season, going 15-4 and punching their ticket to the state tournament for the seventh consecutive season. But if the question is how do they stack up against the best in the state one only has to look at how they’ve done against league rival La Conner. Darrington has played the Braves four times this season, including the bi-district championship, and lost all four matches by a combined score of 12-0. The good news is Darrington is on the opposite side of the bracket from second-ranked La Conner. The bad news? The Loggers are on the same side of the bracket as No. 1-ranked Colfax.
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