State Championship Matches to Watch: Divisions 2A/4A

<p>The summit of the high school volleyball season in the state of Washington has arrived as starting on Thursday the best teams of the Evergreen State will battle each other at this year’s State Championship.</p> <p>The Yakima Valley SunDome once again hosts the season-ending tournament. Chelan, Oakesdale and La Conner lifted the trophies of Classes 1A, 1B and 2B last weekend and now it’s time for competition to start in the three remaining divisions.</p> <p>Class 3A started on Thursday it’s time for divisions 2A and 4A to let the balls fly. Here are a few matches to follow:</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><u>2A</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Shadle Park (15) vs Steilacoom (2) – 7.00am</strong></p> <p>The Shadle Park high school out of Spokane was strong during the season, winning 12 of their 18 matches. The Highlanders were fifth in the Greater Spokane district with ten wins and four losses but still found their way to the State Championship. Much of the team’s offensive production comes from the Flerchinger sisters Chloe (senior outside hitter) and Abbey (sophomore middle blocker).</p> <p>Steilacoom was among the top teams in the entire state with a regular season campaign of 22 wins and just two losses. The team secured a 14-2 win record to finish second in the 2A South Puget Sound District. The Sentinels benefit from having a core of seniors who have been playing together for years in Gabrielle Faamausili (setter), Danielle Faamausili and Erin Riekena (outside hitters), Naiatea Kaleopa (middle blocker) and Taylor Albert (libero).</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Anacortes (9) vs Ephrata (8) – 8.45am</strong></p> <p>Duels between the eighth and ninth-seeded teams tend to be really even and that’s what we expect for this one. Anacortes moved into the postseason with a 11-6 win record and registered ten wins and five losses in the Northwest district. Senior setter Kenna Flynn runs a well-oiled offense that counts on her sophomore sister Kendyl and senior Skyler Whisler at the pin.</p> <p>Ephrata was as solid as it gets ahead of the State Championship, winning the 2A CWAC district with 11 wins and a single loss and posting a 27-2 win record for the entire season. The Lady Tigers have a standout setter in senior Lindsay Addink and strong hitters to get on the end of her sets in seniors outside hitters Hayden Mills and Paige Heston and sophomore middle blocker Addison Mills.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><u>4A</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Jackson (13) vs Graham-Kapowsin (4) – 10.45am</strong></p> <p>The Jackson Timberwolves did well in the regular season, winning 14 and losing nine matches. The team had a 5-3 win record to rank second in the 4A Wesco district. Jackson’s talented senior setter [player_tooltip player_id="97061" first="Ellina" last="Powell"] has become a scoring threat playing as a right sider and this season she got massive help from outside hitters Reece Nelsom (senior) and Riana Cobane (junior). Powell now splits setting duties with another junior. [player_tooltip player_id="97223" first="Aaliyah" last="Lutali"].</p> <p>Graham-Kapowsin had similar success ahead of the State Championship, ending the regular season with 14 wins in 20 matches. The Eagles had a 10-2 win record in the 4A South Puget Sound district, good enough to finish second. Junior outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id="97258" first="Hailey" last="Brockway"] remains a score machine for the team, who also has talented players in senior libero Talynn Wheeler and two other juniors – setter Kyra Jackson and outside hitter Grace Peterson.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Olympia (9) vs Gonzaga Prep (8) – 10.45am </strong></p> <p>Coming out of the state’s capital, Olympia enters the postseason with a 14-13 win record. The Lady Bears finished fourth in the 4A South Puget Sound district with six wins and five losses. Some of the players who can make a difference for the team are seniors Kate Johnson (right sider) and [player_tooltip player_id="97145" first="Taryn" last="Wilson"] (libero) and sophomore Hannah Byers (outside hitter).</p> <p>The Spokane-based Gonzaga Prep team lost just five times in their 21 matches ahead of the State Championship. With a 9-3 win record, the Bullpups were fourth in the Greater Spokane district. Some of their key players in the postseason will be senior right sider Bailey Benson, junior setter [player_tooltip player_id="97274" first="Kate" last="Palelek"] and sophomore outside hitters Lilli Etter and Maddie Finnegan.</p>