MONROE — After pulling out a hard-fought first set on Thursday night, the undefeated Monroe volleyball team took the court for the second set looking for a 2-0 lead against visiting Kamiak.
It didn’t work out that way.
The Knights pulled away right from the start, seizing leads of 10-2 and 20-6 before finally claiming a 25-13 victory. The match’s momentum, which had started off favoring the Bearcats, had swung decidedly to Kamiak, putting Monroe’s perfect record very much in doubt.
But in the third and fourth sets the Bearcats restored order with scores of 25-19 and 25-14, claiming a 3-1 Western Conference 4A decision that pushes their league and season records to 12-0 and clinches the league championship.
“We had moments where we actually didn’t play as strong as we would’ve liked,” said Monroe coach April Munoz. Particularly in the second set, she said, “our passing and our serving wasn’t very strong, and those were the things that really hurt us.
“But I’m actually very proud that they dug deep, that they didn’t let (the disappointing second set) get them down, and they still fought back and took the match.”
During the break between the second and third sets, Munoz encouraged her players “to relax. I said, ‘We’ve been in this situation before. We know we’re better than what we showed, so just shake it off and start over.’ And we did.”
In each of the final two sets, the Bearcats took an early lead and never trailed, save for a 1-0 deficit in the final set. But after giving up the first point in the fourth set, Monroe took a commanding lead and won convincingly, with junior outside hitter Meredith Teague putting away a powerful kill for the match-winning point.
“(The Knights) challenge us, definitely,” Munoz said. “They’re a great team, a great opponent, and I love playing them every year.”
Jess Clark had 19 digs and 12 kills for Monroe, Mina Duong had 25 digs, Teague had 15 kills, Tatum McGovern had 23 assists, and Alley Hadden had 19 assists.
“I didn’t expect to be undefeated (after 12 matches),” Munoz said, “but I knew that we were going to be somebody to beat. I knew with the talent that I had we were going to go out and battle every match, and I had no doubt about that.”
The Bearcats have not been to state since 2012, “and our team goal is to get to state,” Duong said. “We’ve said that ever since the beginning of the season. We need to work hard, keep doing what we’re doing, fight in districts … and get to state.”
“Last year was a rough year and the year before was a rough year, and we’ve worked so hard to get this far,” added Clark. “I think with all the effort and the work we’ve put in in practice, we deserve to get (to state).”
Kamiak lost for just the third time this season and two of those defeats have come against Monroe. Katie Petterson had 13 kills for the Knights, Kat Anderson had 27 assists and Haley Gilbert had 18 digs.
At Monroe H.S.
Kamiak 22 25 19 14 — 1
Monroe 25 13 25 25 — 3
Highlights—Kamiak: Katie Petterson 13 kills; Kat Anderson 27 assists; Haley Gilbert 18 digs. Monroe: Meredith Teague 15 kills; Jessica Clark 12 kills, 19 digs; Mina Duong 25 digs, Alley Hadden 19 assists; Tatum McGovern 23 assists. Records—Kamiak 9-3 league, 9-3 overall. Monroe 12-0, 12-0.
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