Darrington volleyball has best finish ever
Published 6:42 pm Monday, November 14, 2011
The Darrington girls volleyball team found itself in a strange place on Friday night. Playing in the Yakima SunDome against Riverside Christian, of Yakima, after 10 p.m., the Loggers were having trouble getting acclimated.
But after dropping a tough second set 29-27 to tie the match at 1-1, the Loggers turned it on, dominating the third set 25-14 en route to a 3-1 win over Riverside Christian and putting them into the semifinals of the Class 2B State Tournament.
The win helped spur Darrington to a third-place finish, the highest finish by any girls team in Darrington history.
“The girls were really happy,” said Darrington head coach Greg Powell. “We had a great crowd over there and it was a special weekend.”
After losing to eventual runner-up Colfax in the semifinals, Darrington came from behind to beat Adna in a five-set thriller for the third-place trophy.
“It was a good comeback and it always feels better to end with a win,” Powell said. “It makes it more special.”
The Loggers were led by their three seniors, Jessica Brooks, Brandy Hadaway and libero Jill Goldman. Brooks, a middle blocker, and Hadaway, an outside hitter, each had 50 kills and Goldman had 91 digs over the four games.
Powell, who credited his daughter, Mandy, for helping the team’s conditioning this season, said the roots of this year’s success started before the games ever started this season.
“We tried to push these girls to limits where they would say ‘I can’t’ and then they would do,” Powell said. “It helped set the tone for the season and helped them realize what they could do.”
