1A State Championship: Players to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Over the next two days, a 1A state champion will be crowned in the state of Washington. Chelan comes in having won the title in both 2021 and 2019, with no tournament played in 2020. The #1 seed Goats will have to make it through a strong field of hungry contenders to claim a third straight crown. Here are some of the players that will shine this weekend in the Yakima SunDome. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Jaycee Goldsmith","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2023","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'3u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Freeman","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Goldsmith is the senior leader of the Scotties, and she is a long, athletic presence at the MB spot. She sets the tone for the defensive toughness the Freeman squad has displayed all year. Her size and movement change the opposing team's offensive plan, and the excellent defenders on the backline make it tough to get a kill down. Offensively she is running the slide out of the 5-1 offense and is excellent at cleaning up any joust or overpass that sails into her area.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_1_player_details_player_name":"Layne Dent","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_1_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_1_player_details_height":"6'2u0022","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_1_player_details_position":"32564","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_1_player_details_school":"Cascade Christian","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_1_player_details_club_team":"PSVBA","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_1_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_1_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Cascade Christian has a good one in sophomore Dent. She has a very high contact point and can hit off the top of the blocker's hands, or find an open spot to put away a kill. She is taking swings from all positions on the court and may be best from the right side ultimately with her ideal length for the spot.  Among the leaders in the state in kills, she has passed 300 for the season and should pass 200 digs during the state tournament.rnrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003ca href=u0022https://youtu.be/HA1-mEPFocEu0022u003ehttps://youtu.be/HA1-mEPFocEu003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["97313"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Schoene is a stat stuffer and an offensive juggernaut for La Center. 6'1 with a powerful arm, she continues to rack up kills at a high rate, while hitting at nearly a .500 % clip. The team moves her around smartly, finding her on either pin, down the middle, or from the back row. Her arm swing matches up with the any of the top power hitters in the state, it's unique at the 1A level and a big reason the Wildcats sport a 19-1 season record.rnrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003ca href=u0022https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/ella-schoene/CxH0FAqQEeyAz5TgcHt2rg/videos.htm?videoid=ee4e2da0-bf7f-4e0a-b053-20843336fadau0022u003ehttps://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/ella-schoene/CxH0FAqQEeyAz5TgcHt2rg/videos.htm?videoid=ee4e2da0-bf7f-4e0a-b053-20843336fadau003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_3_player_details_player_name":"Kaylee Wheeler","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_3_player_details_graduating_class":"2023","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_3_player_details_height":"5'7u0022","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_3_player_details_position":"32564","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_3_player_details_school":"La Salle","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_3_player_details_club_team":"Team Yakima","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_3_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"The La Salle senior is all out every point, hyper-aggressive, and has tremendous energy, making plays all over the court. She will ignite a big service run with her flat jump float that has a great pace, and she can attack from all positions. La Salle depends on her to take all the big swings, and she has a fluid game with easy yet explosive athleticism. Wheeler is a great player, a testament that a shorter athlete can be dominant on the court. Fun to watch!","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"Rae Martell","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"2023","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"6'1u0022","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"Annie Wright","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_4_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"The Gators have played a tough mix of opponents this season, and in the biggest games, senior Martell has played her best. She has very good vision as a blocker, with the hand-eye ability to move a particular hand left or right to reject an attacker's shot. Offensively she is smart with her swings and AWS moves her to the pin when needed to get a better matchup. If Martell gets hot, the Gators squad could prove to be a big problem for opponents.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_5_player_details_player_name":"Avery Haff","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_5_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_5_player_details_height":"5'10u0022","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_5_player_details_position":"32564","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_5_player_details_school":"Lakeside (9 Mile) ","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_5_player_details_club_team":"Renovators","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_5_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_5_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"The Eagles from Nine Mile Falls just outside Spokane upset Freeman in the district playoffs, cementing their spot at State. Haff has moved to outside hitter after spending most of her club season playing middle. This has paid off for Lakeside, as she has displayed excellent defense in the middle back, attacked effectively from the pins, and has the tenacity of a middle when putting up a block. An underrated part of her game is her pinpoint serving, She can single out a weak link in the opposing serve receive, and she has posted big ace totals all season.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["244054"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"The top performer for the top seed, Strandberg is a highly ranked beach player who just does everything you need to win on the volleyball court. An excellent defender with has an accurate and tough serve and is a prolific shot-maker on offense. Her length and good vertical lets her take big swings when needed, she can break out any cut, roll, push or tip shot that the situation demands. If the Goats can take the top trophy this year, it's 3 out of 3 state titles for this all-timer.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_7_player":["229375"],"_player_evaluations_7_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_7_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_7_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"Ervin is an electric athlete on the outside, and it's a combination of speed to the ball and a great vertical that makes her a terminal pin hitter. Just a freshman for the Eagles, she defends well, puts up an excellent block, and provides at least one highlight reel smash a match. Keep an eye on this dynamic 2026 prospect!rnrnu003ca href=u0022https://youtu.be/sAjowUC4264u0022u003ehttps://youtu.be/sAjowUC4264u003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":8,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit"} /-->