Season Preview: 4A Teams to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>School is nearly back in session in Washington State, the4 nights are starting to cool down, and the gyms have been busty with tryouts this week. The 4A level is incredibly competitive, with teams from the West Side, Central Washington, and the East sending trophy competitors to the state tournament in November. This year the 4A schools will be in the Yakima SunDome again, Friday and Saturday, November 18th and 19th. Three of the four title contenders we cover here placed in the top spots last year, and should be right here again.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bothell</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars from the Northshore league walked out of the SunDome as champions last year. After surviving an early scare in a 5-set win versus Gonzaga Prep out of Spokane, they impressively handled business. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='97238' first='Haedyn' last='Bambolo']</strong> is back to lead the team and will have to do even more than last year to replace the production of the graduated player of the year <strong>Jenna Legault</strong> (Fresno State). Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='97242' first='Maleah' last='Andrews']</strong> is the spark plug for the squad and is an incredible athlete on the softball diamond as well. <strong>Nora Hayd</strong> brings the big block, and is seriously accomplished on the sand as well, she will need to bring that entire skill set this season to help the Cougars repeat.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Wenatchee</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers will try to claw back to state showcasing their team toughness and ball control, led by senior <strong>Ashton McMahon</strong>, outside hitter, and the head coaches daughter. She is a Central Washington commit as a libero but has the shots and powerful arm to be a difference maker as an attacker. The back line all returns, passing nails with two rising sophomores, <strong>Ava Jo Berry</strong> at Libero, and six rotation hitter, <strong>Keira Demirjian</strong>. <strong>Elise Baier</strong> will be delighted to have the entire back row return as the Panthers setter, she is crafty and does a super job reversing the flow and finding her attackers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Curtis</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='97266' first='Ella' last='Ensign']</strong> will be the engine that makes the Viking's machine go. Having a senior captain lead the way is always a big step toward earning a trophy, Ensign would like to take one more step forward after a second-place finish last year. <strong>Tatyana Tauese</strong> will lead the defense at libero, and sophomore middle <strong>Ariana Medchill</strong> is ready to make a big jump after playing well in 2021. Curtis will have another sophomore with tremendous experience from last year at setter, <strong>Peyton Ensign</strong> looks to make a lasting memory with sister Ella in their last year together for the Vikings. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Graham Kapowsin </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When you scout the GK Eagles, you start with senior star <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='97258' first='Hailey' last='Brockway']</strong>. The Illinois State commit is a powerful force for the Eagles and her setters work hard to feed her the ball anywhere she lines up. <strong>Grace Peterson</strong> returns at the other outside spot and is an athletic player with all the shots in her bag, a great compliment to Brockway. <strong>Kylee Harris </strong>sets the offense and posted impressive assist numbers and should improve on those this year as a senior. <strong>Natalie Nagel</strong> will be one of the middles and led the position in blocks last season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->