KENNEWICK — After going home empty-handed two consecutive years, the Monroe Bearcats snared some long-coveted hardware.
The Monroe High School volleyball team won two of its three matches Saturday during the Class 4A state volleyball championships at the Toyota Center. Despite losing its final contest, Monroe won the eighth-place trophy.
It’s the first 4A state tourney trophy in Monroe program history. The top eight teams in the 16-team competition received awards.
Monroe won loser-out matches against Puyallup and Edmonds-Woodway before losing 3-0 against Shadle Park of Spokane in the fifth/eighth-place match. Afterwards, Monroe senior Claire Sowers lingered on the court to share a prolonged group hug with the team’s other seniors: Kelsey Brennan, Taylor Davis and Jerrika Groeneweg.
“It was disappointing that we didn’t get fifth,” Sowers said later, “but at the same time our goal was to bring home some hardware and we did it.”
It’s just the second state trophy in Monroe team history. The Bearcats won their first one in 1998, placing eighth in 3A.
The historical 4A achievement came in the final season for Monroe’s ninth-year head coach, Dawn Hanson. Asked if she was emotional about coaching the Bearcats for the last time, Hanson said: “No. I’m just really glad that they got what they came for.”
Monroe’s leaders in its loss versus Shadle Park were Kylin Munoz (19 kills), Kaitlyn Drew (31 assists, three aces), Brennan (four aces, nine kills) and Groeneweg (17 digs).
Monroe reached the consolation finals by defeating Western Conference peer Edmonds-Woodway. Monroe swept E-W for the second time this season, prevailing by scores of 26-24, 25-19, 25-21.
Despite getting no rest after its first match of the day — a 3-1 victory over Puyallup — Monroe was sharp against E-W and roared to its second victory in three hours. It was quite a breakthrough for Monroe, which through Friday had lost 12 consecutive state tourney matches dating to 1998.
Brennan, a member of Monroe’s past three state-qualifying teams, described how it felt to end the lengthy losing streak.
“Relief! Finally, we made it,” Brennan said.
On the verge of elimination after losing its only match Friday, Monroe refused to leave without a trophy again, said Brennan, who Wednesday plans to sign an NCAA National Letter of Intent and accept a volleyball scholarship from New Mexico State University.
“We had to get it done,” Brennan said. “This is what we’ve been working for all season, to place (in the top eight). Here we are.”
E-W ended its season with the loss against Monroe. Making their first state-tourney appearance since 1997, the Warriors went 1-2 with a young squad that includes four juniors and four sophomores.
Longtime E-W coach Mike Pittis praised his squad after it swept Inglemoor earlier Saturday. “The main thing we wanted to do was come out and show we belong here, and that we could play with anybody here,” Pittis said.
Against Inglemoor, E-W’s top performers were Marisa Wellington (15 kills, 13 digs), Cailin Fellows (12 kills, 14 digs), Erin Lauber (nine kills, four stuff blocks) and Leigh Fishback (37 assists).
E-W, which had never won a 4A state tourney match, was awestruck Friday but overcame its nerves Saturday, said Lauber.
“We realized that no matter what, this is our last day playing,” the senior said.
Contact Herald Writer Mike Cane at mcane@heraldnet.com. For more high school sports news, check out the prep sports blog Double Team at www.heraldnet.com/doubleteam.
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